Category: Spring

Sorrel soup, with a fresh lemon and subtle sour taste can be made from either wild or garden sorrel (we have both). You don’t need much sorrel and I usually pair it with something else green (spinach, for example, or in this case, asparagus). For even more substance, serve the soup with side offerings of chopped boiled new potatoes, chopped boiled egg and sour cream.

Sorrel and asparagus soup

1 white onion, chopped
1 courgette, chopped
2 sticks of celery, chopped
2-3 garlic cloves, crushed
Sprig of fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
100ml white wine
Bunch of sorrel leaves — separate any thick stalks from leaves; chop the stalks and rip the leaves
Bunch of asparagus — trim and roughly chop.
Vegetable stock (approx 0.5-1 litre; if making for this soup, use asparagus trimmings)
Seasoning

Sauté the chopped onion, courgette, celery, sorrel stalks and garlic in a little oil until softened. Add thyme and bay leaf. Add the white wine and raise the heat to evaporate the alcohol. Add sorrel and asparagus. Add stock just to cover the vegetables. Season. Lower heat to gentle simmer. When asparagus cooked, remove thyme and bay leaf. Blend the soup to preferred texture. Add more stock if too thick. Let cool slightly and serve.

There’s nothing like boxes of overflowing local asparagus to confirm that spring is starting to turn to summer. The fresher the better. To serve with a leg of hogget this Easter I prepared two dishes: a raw asparagus salad, and a sauce of asparagus and mint. The raw asparagus salad was derived from a recipe published in Antonio Carluccio and Gennaro Contaldo’s Two Greedy Italians (Quadrille, 2011). The sauce just seemed the natural thing to do.

Asparagus Salad

350g fresh local asparagus (or a good couple of handfuls)
A few wild or garden sorrel leaves (optional)
Squeeze of lemon juice
Drizzle of olive oil
Salt and pepper
Generous shavings of Parmesan cheese

Remove tips from asparagus stalks. Trim the stalks of any really thick parts or tough skin. Slice stalks length-ways into four or more thin strips and halve. Arrange tips and asparagus matchsticks on dish. Dress with a squeeze of lemon juice and a drizzle of olive oil (you really want the taste of fresh asparagus to dominate). Sprinkle on some torn sorrel leaves (if using). Season. Grate a generous serving of parmesan shavings. Serve.

Asparagus and mint sauce

200ml vegetable stock (I actually used a couple of ladles of stock from cooking beans)
200g asparagus
Handful of mint leaves, chopped
Salt and pepper

Cook asparagus in stock until tender (approximately 8 minutes). Remove from heat. Mix in mint leaves. Roughly blend the mixture. Season to taste. Leave to cool and serve.