Asparagus with melted butter and new potatoes

Ingredients for 2 servings:

• 500 g white asparagus
• 500 g potatoes (early potatoes) with very fine, thin skin
• 100 g butter, to melt
• herbs, fresh
• 1 pinch of salt, for cooking potatoes
• 1 pinch(s) of salt and sugar for the asparagus
• 1 piece(s) butter, in the asparagus water
• breadcrumbs

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 25 minutes; Total time approx. 55 minutes

wonderfully delicious without meat, with scraped potatoes

Peel the new potatoes with a paring knife. This is achieved by raking across the skin. (Low German = schabben, schrappen = scraped potatoes). Cut large potatoes in half. The potatoes should be roughly the same size. Prepare the asparagus. Peel the stalks thoroughly (white ones) and trim off the ends. The peeled scraps can later be used to make soup stock. This is best done in the pot that contained the water from the cooked asparagus. Cook the potatoes in water with a little salt for about 20 minutes. Add a little butter, salt, and sugar to a large amount of water and bring to a boil. Add the asparagus to the boiling water and let it simmer for about 10 to 15 minutes, depending on the thickness of the stalks, until the vegetables are tender. Melt the butter and brown slightly. If desired, add some breadcrumbs to the butter and brown with it. Arrange the asparagus and potatoes on a plate and drizzle with melted butter. Sprinkle freshly chopped or frozen herbs over the top.