I've been growing asparagus for a few years now and they seem to be producing more and more stalks every year. This year I even had to throw a kilo or two of stalks in the bin because if you do not keep an eye on them, I mean really keep an eye on them all day long, they will surprise you by shooting off into outer space just like that.

When the season begins to approach I usually check for stalks once a day before lunch. Until now this has been sufficient. But this spring it clearly wasn't. Stalks that would look tiny (about 6cm) in the evening or noon, would stun me with their 70cm growth the next morning!

And of course once the season draws to an end and you've eaten quite a bit of asparagus, you might just get a bit lazy too and let them run wild...

Asparagus and triple cheese tarts


about 24 asparagus stalks, trimmed to suitable lengths
lemon juice
400g puff pastry
100g feta cheese
100g cream cheese
100g grated cheese, Cheddar or the like
milk and egg for brushing

First, either steam the asparagus spears for 3 minutes or put them into a bowl and just pour some boiling water from the kettle and let them blanch for a minute or so. This only works with fresh asparagus. When using store bought, should add a couple more minutes to the steaming time.
Drain asparagus and toss with some lemon juice.

Mix together cream cheese and grated cheese. Season with a pinch of pepper. Salt shouldn't be neccessary as the cheese is salty enough.

Roll out the pastry and cut into eight squares or disks. Score the pastry around the edges to create a 1cm border.
Divide the Cheddar mixture between the eight pastry pieces. Add nicely trimmed asparagus spears.
Brush edges with egg and milk mixture. Crumble feta and sprinkle on top.

Bake in a 200C oven for about 12 minutes.


Serve with a salad of your choice.

Flavours of spring and early summer - asparagus, garfish and rhubarb.

For the last three weeks I've been snacking on the freshest asparagus imaginable. I am privileged enough to have five crowns growing beside our house, less than five metres from the front door.
I haven't bought any asparagus in two years. You just can't beat the flavour of asparagus that just ten minutes before landing on your plate was still basking in sunlight, bobbing its head in the wind.

Like many, I too love to eat it with eggs and toast, either steamed or grilled. Being so fresh I could probably just eat it raw but I love the smoky flavour of grilled asparagus. It takes about five to seven minutes with a panini grill. Quick, simple and beautiful.

Sometimes I will try something new though, like an asparagus pie or soup (didn't enjoy the soup). This time I found an interesting recipe by Nathan Outlaw, he calls it baked asparagus cheese, but I think it's basically a rich gratin. Anyway it sounded like a delight (if you love cheese like I do).

I went ahead and baked it. The taste was just as lovely as I had anticipated, after all, one can't go wrong with this much melted cheese!

It was thumbs up all round but I would like to add that I had some of the sauce left over. Not just a spoonful but quite a bit more.
So, unless your asparagus stalks are as thick as toddlers arms, I'd suggest making only two thirds of the Béchamel.



20 asparagus spears, trimmed
50g butter, plus extra for greasing
50g flour
450ml milk
2 egg yolks
1 tsp strong  mustard
a good dash of Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper
175g cheddar cheese, grated




Preheat your oven to 200°C using the grill setting.
Blanch the asparagus in a large pan of salted water for one minute, drain and immediately refresh in cold water. When cooled, drain, pat dry using a paper towel and spread on the base of a buttered ovenproof dish so that the base is evenly covered.
In a small saucepan on a medium heat, melt the butter and add the flour. Cook, stirring for 1-2 minutes until lightly golden. Remove the pan from the heat and gradually whisk in the milk to form a smooth sauce. Return to the heat, stir and simmer for 3 minutes.
Remove from the heat and beat in the egg yolks, mustard and Worcestershire sauce. Taste and season with salt and pepper and pour over the asparagus so that all stalks are evenly covered. Sprinkle grated cheese on top.
Place in the oven and cook for 10 minutes until golden and bubbling. Serve immediately.

Some delayed spring photos.

Cowslip. Picked on the 10th of May. I like to eat them fresh. Just reach out and pluck their yellow flowers from the sockets and chew. Or you could turn it into a tisane, either fresh or dried.

On Mother's Day, I harvested the first ever asparagus stalks from my garden. Just three plants right now but I'll be adding some more later this year. A different variety that I grew from seed. Will see how that works out. Also dug up some fresh potatoes and a simple salad was born.

Some people were surprised about the potatoes but revealing the secret, those were the small midget potatoes from last autumn that were too tiny to pick, you know the spuds that are as big as a beetle, every crop has some and you're bound to leave them behind as they are just too small. While cultivating the field in spring, these babies are likely to surface, about the size of a plum.

A week later, and another bunch of asparagus. This time with scallops, poached egg and cheat's Hollandaise.

The plants are just a few years old at the moment but as they get older the crop will increase. Right now I can get a handful every week from the middle of May till the middle of June.
The taste of homegrown asparagus is something else, I expected to feel a difference but it still took me by surprise!

I prefer to steam or grill my asparagus. For these fresh slender stalks, 4 to 5 minutes in the steaming basket will be enough. Then sprinkle with salt, pepper and some lemon juice.
Poached the egg for five minutes which was just enough to leave the yolk runny and silky. Sautéed the scallops in butter over a medium-low heat. Poured the sauce over and done! The sauce will keep for a week in the fridge, covered. Just reheat.


Some weeks ago we happened to travel in the same lift as Mrs. President. She was alone. There were four of us. Of course we all pretended as if we didn't recognise her at all.
Here, we are so well behaved that we would never dream of putting other people, no matter how famous or significant, in an embarrassing situation by blurting out clumsy, however well-meant, slightly awkward compliments. Instead, we will go out of our way to act as if we do not know who they are or pretend we plain just do not see them. It's perfectly normal. And can seem right funny sometimes! :D



Blender Hollandaise

2 egg yolks
1/2 tsp mustard
2 tsp lemon juice
a bit of white wine vinegar
a dash of chilli sauce or Tabasco
80g-100g butter
salt, pepper


Although Eric Ripert uses a whopping 282g (!) of butter in his version of blender Hollandaise, I find 80g to be perfectly fine in most cases. Do try it for yourself, of course.

The process is very simple. Throw egg yolks, mustard and lemon juice into a blender, cover and combine. Meanwhile heat butter in a microwave until steaming hot. With the blender running, pour hot butter into the blender in a steady thin stream. It will be pale and creamy in seconds. Then taste and season accordingly.