Cream of asparagus soup

Fresh, creamy and irresistible: cream of asparagus soup! Seasonal like no other, this delicious spoon dish is one of the asparagus variations we love. In our recipe, a squeeze of lemon gives it a fresh kick, while a spoonful of honey gently balances it out. However, the secret to the full-bodied asparagus flavor lies in the home-cooked asparagus stock. Made simply by boiling the freshly peeled skin, it provides a mild, round flavor that harmonizes wonderfully with the velvety texture and creaminess of the asparagus cream soup. Simply delicious!

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

1.5 kg asparagus
120 g shallots
50 g butter
40 g cornflour
Peel and juice of half a lemon
2 l water
60 ml white port wine
1 pinch of chilli paste
6 tsp lemon oil
1.5-2 tsp salt
1 tsp acacia honey
120 ml cream
120 g crème fraîche

1. Wash and peel the asparagus, cutting off the woody ends if necessary. Collect the peelings and the cut ends in a large pot.

2. make the asparagus stock: To do this, pour cold water over the peelings and asparagus trimmings. Add one and a half teaspoons of salt. Bring to the boil slowly and simmer gently for 10 minutes. Then pour the stock through a sieve into another container, briefly drain the peel and asparagus sections, squeeze out the last of the liquid with a spoon and pour the stock back into the pan. Squeeze half a lemon and peel wide strips from the peel. Add the acacia honey, most of the juice (reserve a little for seasoning) and the lemon peel to the stock and bring to the boil once.

3. cook the asparagus: Add the asparagus to the stock and bring everything to a simmer once, then cook gently below boiling point. The asparagus can cook in this way until it is slightly translucent and therefore tender but still firm to the bite. Remove the asparagus from the stock and leave to cool slightly. Cut off the bottom third of the asparagus spears and cut into pieces, set the spears with the heads to one side.

4. Prepare the asparagus soup: Gently sweat the shallots in butter, but do not allow them to take on any color. When they are translucent, deglaze with white port. Stir in the cornflour and then pour in around 1.4 l of the asparagus stock. Add a third of the asparagus (the previously prepared pieces), bring to the boil while stirring and then puree. Stir in the cream and crème fraîche, season with salt, chili, honey and lemon juice.

5. serve the soup: Cut the remaining asparagus into spoon-sized pieces, warm and divide between the soup plates. Blend the soup again and pour over the top. To finish, drizzle each portion with lemon oil.