Asparagus Soup

Ingredients:

Ghee or butter-flavored olive oil

2 lb. asparagus, chopped

1 med. week onion, chopped

1 tsp. coriander seeds

1 Tbs. minced garlic

t tsp. salt

1/2 - 1 tsp. cumin

1/2 tsp. smoked paprika

Zest and juice of 1 lemon

1 14-oz. can coconut milk

Pistachios, toasted

process:

Saute onion in ghee or olive oil. Cook 2 min until onion begins to become translucent. Add the stems of asparagus, the garlic and the coriander seeds. Cook 3-4 min to enable the stems to soften.

Add the asparagus tips, the broth and the cumin, paprika and lemon juice and zest.

Cook 10-15 until all veggies are soft. Use an immersion blender; pulse mixture to emulsify. It will still be chunky.

Add coconut milk. Stir continuously until thoroughly mixed. Use immersion blender again to emulsify until completely smooth.

Ladle into bowls and garnish with toasted pistachios.

I went to my friend Debby’s house this weekend for dinner. She, like me, is a connoisseur of healthy cooking. She has tons of amazing cookbooks by greats like Mark Hyman. If you’re not familiar with Mr. Hyman, you should check out his work. Not only is his nutrition advise sound, but it’s interesting reading. He speaks to current issues with food culture, which is one of the reasons I love him.

Anyhoo…..Debby made a fabulous asparagus soup for our dinner; it was light and creamy and fresh. I detected notes of lemon and a hint of smokiness. She described in generalities, how she made it and I just couldn’t get it out of my mind. So the next day I thought, based on what I tasted and what Debby described, I’m going to make this soup….and I did. The result is what follows. My husband nearly keeled over with joy when he tasted this. He was SO excited that he thought it appropriate for every Holiday or celebratory meal. We’ll see about that..

I hope you enjoy this. While you can get asparagus year-around, this will taste the best during the Spring, when asparagus is in season.