Asparagus

Today I am going to focus on one of my all-time favorite vegetables: Asparagus. I figure since it's spring, why not? I particularly like asparagus because it is a versatile ingredient. It can stand up on it's own and also play well with other ingredients. Whether simply grilled with olive oil, salt, and pepper; or as an accompaniment to a pizza or pasta dish, I will show you a few asparagus inspired dishes and hopefully inspire you to go out and create your own.

Pizza with Aspargus, Pancetta, Goat Cheese, and Sun-Dried Tomatoes
This dish is a prime example of how asparagus both can assert itself flavor-wise and yet coexist with other dominate flavors.
1. Begin by preheating your oven to 450 degrees and by preparing pizza dough (either make your own or buy frozen). Roll out crust, using a bit of flour to prevent sticking, into two 10-inch crusts. One pound of dough is plenty for two 10-inch pizzas.
2. Using 1/3 of a pound of pancetta that is sliced no more than 1/4 of an inch thick, dice into small pieces. Preheat a pan with a small amount of olive oil and render the fat out of the pancetta (until crispy). Drain on a paper towel and set aside. 
3. Trim the woody ends off of 1 pound of fresh asparagus and slice on a bias into 1/3 of an inch thick slices. Saute over medium heat with olive oil, salt, and pepper until just tender (4 or 5 minutes). 
4. Brush pizza crusts with olive oil and top with mozzarella cheese, pancetta, asparagus, sun-dried tomatoes, and goat cheese.
5. Bake at 450 degrees until crust is nice and crispy and the cheese has sufficiently browned.
6. Slice and enjoy.

Asparagus Soup
1. Start by dicing 1 pound of fresh asparagus, 4 carrots, 3 cloves of garlic, and 1 yellow onion into a fine dice.
2. In a heavy bottomed stock pot add 4 Tbs. butter and saute all vegetables just until tender. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Once sauteed, deglaze pan with 1 1/2 cups of white wine. Reduce the wine by half.
4. After the wine has reduced, add 2 qts. of homemade or low-sodium chicken stock. Bring the mixture to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Simmer the liquid until all vegetables are tender (20 minutes or so).
5. In a separate pan, saute 1/2 of a pound of fresh asparagus in olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Cook until tender but still with a slight crunch left in the asparagus.
6. Remove chicken stock and vegetable mixture from heat and puree until completely smooth. At this point taste the soup and adjust seasonings if need be.
7. Return soup to low heat and whisk in 2 cups of heavy whipping cream and 2 cups of sour cream.
8. Serve in soup bowls and top the soup with sauteed asparagus and freshly cracked black pepper.