Asparagus cream soup à la Tick

Ingredients for 6 servings:

• 1 ½ kg asparagus, white, 2nd variety
• 3 liters of water
• 100 g celery
• 3 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 100 ml cream
• Salt
• White pepper, freshly ground
• 2 tbsp cornstarch

Instructions

Working time approx. 20 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 50 minutes; Total time approx. 1 hour 10 minutes

Peel the asparagus. Place the asparagus peels in cold water, bring to a boil, and simmer over low heat for 20 minutes. I usually buy peeled asparagus and have the peels added. For soup, I prefer the second variety because it’s thinner. Before any discussions about asparagus peels/pesticides/bitter substances arise: simply use organic asparagus. This way, you can play it safe if you’re unsure about pesticides, and if you boil the peels over very low heat for no longer than 20 minutes, nothing will become bitter. Just don’t add salt or butter or anything else at this point, because we want the flavor of the asparagus to remain in the broth (due to osmosis). Cut the small piece of celery into small cubes. The celery shouldn’t really taste that much in the end, but it incredibly enhances the natural flavor of the asparagus. You can, of course, leave it out—just give it a try! Cut the asparagus into small pieces. Place the first and second asparagus heads in small bowls separately. After 20 minutes, pour the asparagus skins through a sieve and collect the water. Remove about 100 ml of the liquid and set aside. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter and quickly fry the asparagus pieces from the second head with 1 tablespoon of sugar until slightly caramelized. Add the diced celery, pour in the asparagus water and cream, season with salt, bring to a boil, and simmer uncovered over medium heat for about 20 minutes. Fry the asparagus heads and the first head in a pan with 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of sugar until caramelized. Then remove from the pan and place on a paper towel to drain. After 20 minutes, puree the soup. Add the fried asparagus heads and simmer for another 5 minutes. The asparagus pieces should still have some bite. Stir the cornstarch with the reserved, now cooled, asparagus water until smooth and stir into the soup. Bring back to a boil and simmer for about 1 minute. Serve the soup with some freshly chopped chives, if desired.