Creamy Asparagus Soup from Cook's Country

By Foodiewife

Yeah, sure. There are lots of recipes for Cream of Asparagus Soups. This one is my all time favorites, so far. This appears in the April 2010 issue of Cook's Country. There are two ingredients, that surprised me. One, gives the soup a vibrant green color, and the other "secret" ingredients balances out the flavor of asparagus. I made this is less than 30 minutes, and it's a soup that my family wants me to make again. To see how I made this, visit my food blog at: http://foodiewife-kitchen.blogspot.com/2010/03/creamy-asparagus-soup-soup-of-different.html

Ingredients

• 2 pounds asparagus (see note), stem ends trimmed
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 small leeks , white and light green parts only, halved lengthwise and sliced thin
• Salt and pepper
• 3 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1/2 cup frozen peas
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

Details

Servings 6
Preparation time 10mins
Cooking time 40mins
Adapted from foodiewife-kitchen.blogspot.com

Preparation

Step 1

Cut tips off asparagus spears and chop stalks into 1/2-inch pieces. Melt 1 1/2 tablespoons butter in Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add asparagus tips and cook, stirring occasionally, until just tender, about 2 minutes. Set aside.

Add remaining butter and asparagus, leeks, 1/2 tablespoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper to empty pot and cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened, about 10 minutes.

Add broth to pot and bring to boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes.

Stir in peas and Parmesan. Puree soup in blender** in 2 batches and return to pot.
**NOTE: I always use an immersion blender to puree my soups right in the pot-- so much easier and less cleanup.

Stir in cream, lemon juice, and asparagus tips, and cook until heated through, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serve. (Soup can be refrigerated in airtight container for 2 days.)