I love a good soup, especially during the winter on a cold day. I love asparagus but have yet to try it in soup form. I love fast, simple, easy to follow recipes for inspiration on what to make for lunch. What do these three things have in common? Creamy asparagus soup!
(I don’t know if that made sense y’all, but roll with me here because doesn’t that soup look good?)
Vegetables Illustrated, page 19, has a recipe that makes a heartier soup by having leaks as well as asparagus; it also pairs well to the flavor of the soup by not overpowering the star of the show (the asparagus). They also make sure of that by having you keep the asparagus heads to throw into the soup once it’s done for texture and flavor. A very smart idea that I hadn’t thought of, if you ask me!
First thing I do is prep my ingredients, wash and chop my asparagus and leeks, and breath a sigh of relief that I happened to buy just the right amount of leeks needed for this recipe (please look at your recipe before you go shopping guys. Nothing like running around the store wondering if you should get two leeks or ten…). Then I follow the directions as follows: sauté vegetables until tender, blend until smooth and creamy, and add any extra flavor elements.
See guys? Super easy and quick to do! Lastly, I added the remaining asparagus heads to add texture to the soup (and I tried my hardest to resist eating those heads while I was cooking the rest of the soup so I’m glad there were some left) along with heavy cream and lemon juice. And there you have it! Creamy asparagus soup done and ready to be served!
I actually enjoyed this soup more than I thought I would. You can clearly taste the asparagus and leeks, but the leeks don’t overwhelm the main asparagus flavor that you get especially when you get a bite of those delicious asparagus heads! The recipe calls for chicken broth but I used vegetable broth which I think also helped bring out that flavor.
My only suggestion is that they add more seasonings to deepen the flavor of the soup. The taste is good, don’t get me wrong! But my family isn’t one for subtle flavors; so adding some onion powder and our much loved mushroom seasoning goes a long way. Whether you have it with rice (like my Dad), with bread (like me), or even with a grilled cheese sandwich (Mom’s idea for the win), this soup is just the right thing for a cold wintery day. I say give this recipe a shot! It’s something new that not many people think of, and I’m glad I’ve gotten to try it.
