22 May 2013

Green, part III - Inspired by asparagus



I mentioned recently that my favorite way to prepare most vegetables is to sauté them quickly in olive oil. But another delicious option—for both vegetables & fruit—is to make it the centerpiece of a rustic tart. Whether destined to be sweet or savory, I use the same basic crust recipe, with occasional minor variations/additions (I might use all white flour, a mix of white & whole wheat or nut 'flours', add a dash of sugar or cardamom or rosemary and so on). Besides the apples or pears, or asparagus or onionsor whatever central ingredient has inspired the tartI also choose a few ingredients as accents: herbs, spices, nuts or other hints of flavor. The asparagus tart shown above is garnished with garlic, chili peppers, thyme & bacon (recipe below).

Asparagus is still plentiful in the markets, so we've been enjoying it a lot these days, either simply sautéed, served with poached eggs, tossed with pasta, stirred into risotto—or lined up in a crust. I love the look of the slender, segmented stalks tied together into fat bunches, with their tender tips curving off in different directions...like a bouquet of stems, still smelling of the earth. Though, if I've ever seen asparagus growing, I probably wouldn't have known it. I was surprised to learn that the plants ('crowns') that produce these extremely green vegetables give way to feathery, fern-like foliage with red berries later in the summer, and then turn yellow in the autumn.







 

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And here are some more of the 'story strips' I mentioned in the last post. I still haven't figured out what they're all about, but continue to enjoy organizing things from my days into these somewhat orderly lines.



 

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{There will be at least one more 'GREEN' entry before the month is over...}


5 comments:

  1. Hi Lisa- I am salivating over this delicious green... Really loving the story strips...scientific looking yet whimsical at the same time!

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    1. Thanks, Julie - we're still enjoying asparagus often, and it feels so spring-y (even though we're back to really cold temps again - I'm reminded of why I don't usually put my winter coat away until June!). Not very reliable sun for photographing these days, but lots of ideas for the 'story strips' when it comes back to stay...
      - Lisa

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  2. What a delicious looking tart - I am tempted to make one - and I love the whimsy of the story strips - funny how things happen and we play with them, and don't quite know what they are or where they are going, but knowing that you need to do it anyway. Enjoy!

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    1. Thank you, Fiona! I've seen some beautiful asparagus tarts before - rectangular or square with a lovely straight row of asparagus stalks - but I love how these slightly curved ones inspired an oval tart...and how the story strips are all curved as well. (Still having fun with them!)
      - Lisa

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  3. I'm tempted to make one too! That looks absolutely delicious. Probably not the time here for asparagus (though no doubt it is still available from somewhere), and certainly our asparagus bed is resting, but I will stash this recipe to keep for summer.

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{Sorry about enabling word recognition, but I'm hoping it will alleviate the spam.}

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