Soup - Creamy Asparagus Soup

By BlueSchmoo

Most asparagus soups are either overly complicated with laundry lists of expensive ingredients that upstage the asparagus, or minimalistic and underwhelming. We wanted to develop a recipe that fell somewhere in the middle: a refined, creamy soup—not too thick or thin—that let the sweet, nutty asparagus shine through. Here’s what we discovered:

Test Kitchen Discoveries
Cooking asparagus on medium-low slowly coaxes out its flavor. Be sure not to overcook the asparagus; for its fresh flavor to translate to the soup, it should be just tender enough to puree, but no more.

Ingredients

• Peel the spears with a vegetable peeler if they are thicker than 1/2 inch.
• 2 pounds asparagus (see note), stem ends trimmed (1 Lb)
• 3 Tbsp unsalted butter (1 Tbsp+1 tsp)
• 2 small leeks , white and light green parts only, halved lengthwise and sliced thin (1 small)
• Salt and pepper
• 3 1/2 (1 3/4 Cups) cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1/2 cup frozen peas (1/4 Cup)
• 2 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese (1 Tbsp
• 1/4 cup heavy cream (2 Tbsp)
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice (1/4 tsp)

Preparation

Step 1

1. COOK TIPS Cut tips off asparagus spears and chop stalks into 1/2-inch pieces. Melt 1 1/2 tablespoons butter in Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add asparagus tips and cook, stirring occasionally, until just tender, about 2 minutes. Set aside.

2. SWEAT VEGETABLES Add remaining butter and asparagus, leeks, 1/2 tablespoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper to empty pot and cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened, about 10 minutes.

3. SIMMER SOUP Add broth to pot and bring to boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in peas and Parmesan. Puree soup in blender in 2 batches and return to pot. Stir in cream, lemon juice, and asparagus tips, and cook until heated through, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serve. (Soup can be refrigerated in airtight container for 2 days.)