The best asparagus soup recipe to serve hot or chilled

It is Spring and Spring fruit and veggies are showing up in the grocery store.  Lately, asparagus have been available.  Usually the stalks get trimmed and thrown away, but for some reason when I saw the amount of this delicious vegetable that was going to end up in the trash, I decided to use them.  The first thing that came to mind was a delicious asparagus soup. 

Asparagus soup is a great way to use stringy stalks since the stalks are cooked then pureed.  It is a delightful soup that is delicious both hot and chilled.

 

Sorry, I don't have photos of making this soup, but next time I make it, I will update this post with the details.  The recipe contains enough details for you to make it without problems.

Creamy Asparagus Soup

Makes about 8 cups 

• 6 cups  Chicken broth
• 1 ½ lbs Asparagus                  
• 2 tbsp  Butter
• 1 med  Onion, diced
• 2 tbsp  All-purpose Flour
• ½ cup  Half and half
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste 

1. Add chicken broth to a 4-6 qt stockpot and bring to a boil.  Turn down heat. 

2. Meanwhile wash and trim asparagus.  You will use everything but the tips.  (If you only have the woody ends, that's fine, too.  The soup will still be wonderful.  You may want a few whole asparagus for decoration.)  Cut the stalks in about 2” pieces.   Place all the stalks in the chicken broth.  Cook for about 20 minutes or until the asparagus is soft.  

3. While the asparagus are cooking, dice onion.  Place butter in small frying pan and sauté onions until translucent.  Sprinkle the flour over the onions and cook for a minute or two.  The flour should be completely absorbed into the butter/onion mixture.  If it is not, add a little more butter and cook until well incorporated.  Using a whisk, incorporate some of the chicken/asparagus broth to thin out the onion/flour mixture. 

4. You will want to puree the asparagus and onions.  There are several ways to do this:  1) Blender; 2) immersion blender or 3) Vitamix. 

5. If using a blender or Vitamix, remove the asparagus solids from the pan and put in the blender or vitamix.  If there is room, include the onion/flour mixture to remove all lumps.  Whirl until completely smooth.  Be careful not to load the machine more than about ⅓ to ½ full or the hot mixture can explode.  Also hold the lid down using a towel for protection.  Do this in batches until everything is pureed.  Put it back in the pan.  

6. If using an immersion blender, blend right in the pot until the mixture is completely pureed.   

7. Whichever method you use, continue cooking until everything is well combined and begins to boil.  This will thicken the soup.  Add the half and half, then salt and pepper to taste. 

8. Garnish the soup with a few of the asparagus tips that have been cooked.  This is good hot or chilled.   

If you make this soup out of season, it can be quite expensive to make, but in the Spring, asparagus are very affordable.