Asparagus (Asperges).—These should be carefully
picked over, the stalks well scraped with the back of
a knife, and made into small bundles, keeping the
heads very even; then with a sharp knife cut the
stalks also even, and tie the bundles up with a tape.
There are two methods of cooking them, the old
and the new. The former is to lay them longways
into fast boiling salted water (allow ½ oz. salt to half
a gallon of water), with a lump of sugar, and boil
sharply, uncovered, for ten to twenty minutes; then
lift them out very carefully, drain well, remove the
tape, and serve on a trebly folded napkin with any
sauce to taste. The great objection to this method
is that half the time the stalks are not cooked, whilst
the heads are overdone, and usually floating loose on
the water. The new method is that advised by Sir
H. Thompson in his valuable little book, on “Food
and Feeding.” For this you require properly a
small frame made for the purpose, but, failing this,
cut the stalks very even, and tie them up in a bundle
large enough to keep steady, then place them upright
in a deep pan, with boiling water to within two inches
of the tops. In this way the heads will only be steamed
and will be just cooked right, though kept on the
fire for thirty to forty minutes, which time will
render the major part of the stalk tender and eatable,
instead of, as usually happens, tough and stringy
from insufficient cooking. Having cooked the aspara-
gus, lift it out and dish as above on a delicately white
and triply folded napkin. The old-fashioned custom
of dishing this (and other vegetables) on a slice of
toast is a relic of barbarism, dating from the days
when cooks were careless about draining their veget-
ables. Never serve the sauce in the dish with the
asparagus, but always in a separate boat. Some
gourmets aver that to eat asparagus in perfection it
should be served if hot with a cold (if not actually iced)
sauce, or if cold with a hot sauce. The favourite sauces
for this vegetable, if served hot, are white sauce
(see Sauce blanche), Sauce mousseuse (season half a gill
of boiling water with nutmeg, pepper, and salt, stir in
the yolks of two eggs, and whisk this all well together
at the side of the stove without letting it boil; then
work in bit by bit 4oz. of butter broken up small,
whisking it all till it looks like cream; now add a
squeeze of lemon juice and serve in a hot tureen;
this sauce is equally good with artichoke bottoms,
cold sauce, etc.), oiled butter (beurre fondu), Hollandaise,
or Sauce mousseline (for this put half a gill of cream,
four egg yolks, a pinch of salt, a grate of nutmeg, and
three crushed peppercorns into a pan, and stand this
in the bain marie, or in another larger pan, half filled
with boiling water, and whisk it all together with
a whisk, adding 1oz. of butter (cut up into very
small pieces) gradually, not adding one piece till the
previous one is perfectly amalgamated, and whisking
it all the time; when the sauce looks like a rich frothy
cream it is ready, and for company purposes should
be tammied, and just before serving should be finished
off with a few drops of lemon juice); for cold asparagus
use plain iced cream seasoned with a little white pepper,
mayonnaise, or tomato cream, etc. The water in
which the asparagus is cooked is always best as
a foundation for the sauces used with it, but always
be careful to keep the sauce delicate, or the natural
flavour of the asparagus will be lost. This is not so
important when canned asparagus is used. The
latter, by the way, should always be served cold,
thus: Lift it carefully from the tin, or bottle, on
to a colander, and let the water from the tap run on it
for a minute or two, then set it on ice till wanted.
Be careful in lifting it, for the heads break very easily.
Asparagus served plain thus is known on menus
as asperges en branches, sauce, etc., according to the
sauce chosen. Asparagus left over from a previous
meal is also delicious if the tender part is cut into inch
lengths, two or three pieces being dipped together in
good frying batter, and dropped into boiling fat till
delicately coloured, then well drained, dusted lightly
with coralline pepper, and served as pointes d'asperges
en beignets, or asparagus fritters. Or lay the cooked
asparagus in a well-buttered and crumb-sprinkled
piedish, dusting each row, as it is put in, with white
pepper, a little salt, and grated Parmesan cheese, finish
off with seasoned white breadcrumbs, a squeeze of
lemon juice, and sufficient oiled butter to moisten it
all, and bake till hot and lightly coloured; serving
it as scalloped A. or A. au gratin. Or cut the green
part of the cooked asparagus into pieces the size of
peas, and toss these in a pan, with sufficient butter to
moisten it, pepper, salt, and a squeeze of lemon juice,
over a slow fire till hot, and serve as A. en petits pois.
For obvious reasons, unless there is any asparagus
left over, it is better, for this dish, to use asparagus
sprue (long slender sprouts which run up after the
blanching of the asparagus is over), as these have the
right flavour, but are cheaper, as they are useless
for decorative purposes. Asparagus sprue treated
as above and inserted in the folds of a savoury
or cheese omelet, makes a delicious and uncommon
dish.