Something in my Yorkshire upbringing approves of this recipe, as it uses up all the asparagus trimmings, the tough steams, and the bright green asparagus cooking water saved from other recipes. I keep this jealously in the fridge until I can make this soup. It’s a Sophie Grigson recipe which uses sorrel which we can’t get here, but it works just as well with spinach. Serves 2
175g asparagus trimmings
40g butter
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped [Sophie says one, but that’s not garlicky enough for us]
2 handfuls spinach, rinsed and torn [her recipe uses sorrel which we didn’t have]
1 tbsp plain flour [we used gluten-free]
600ml leftover asparagus cooking water [or topped up to 600ml with plain water or vegetable stock]
freshly ground pepper [we rarely add salt, especially if using a stock cube]
1 tbsp fresh chives, chopped Chop the asparagus roughly. Melt the butter in the saucepan, gently cook the onion and garlic until tender but without browning. Add the shredded spinach and stir until wilted. Sprinkle in the flour, stir briefly then bit-by-bit add in the asparagus water/stock.  Add the asparagus trimmings to the pan, season. Simmer for 20 minutes. Process the soup until smooth, if there are stringy bits then pass it through a sieve. Re-heat just before serving. Sprinkle with chives before eating. It’s like eating a fresh green spring day, in a bowl.
5 to remember
la educación – upbringing
la guarnición – trimmings
liso/a – smooth
un colador – a sieve
fresco/a – fresh

Recipe adapted from Eat Your Greens by Sophie Grigson [UK: BBC Books]