April is the cruelest month

breeding spargel out of dark land...

Dutch people are obsessed with asparagus during asparagus season, and rightly so...because it is delicious. The difference is that they mainly eat white (spargel) versus green or other types of asparagus. For me the jury is out which one is more delicious. The green variety is generally more flavorful but I like the chubby succulent and translucent quality of white asparagus. They are totally different animals in any case.


Photo I took from the internet.

There are many ways of eating asparagus, and I have eaten it twice now this year. Michiel made a delicious version featuring asparagus with butter sauce, egg, ham, and potatoes on the side. mmm. The other day, I tried making asparagus with anchovies with Jorn. I love anchovies and became interested in using them in food after Inga made me anchovies and runner beans once. Also they remind me of going to Spain, tapas, trying different brands of anchovies out of tins.

Here is the recipe I modified from the UK Times. I think this recipe is for green asparagus.

I left out the lemon zest, parsley, and parmesan because I didn't have any. Also, I peeled the asparaguses so that they would be tender. The end result was pretty delicious, but I have to practice either peeling the asparaguses better or steam them for longer.
It turned out really delicious, though I need practice steaming asparaguses.

Finally, a detail that I have not observed for myself but is a source of complaint and comment for others. As Marcel Proust says, "[asparagus] transforms my chamber-pot into a flask of perfume." Asparagus doesn't make my pee smell! Well according to Wikipedia it does: "all individuals produce the odorous compounds after eating asparagus, but only about 40% of the population have the autosomal genes required to smell them." Damn those nonexistent autosomal genes!

In other news. I brought some MSG back from California and stole a Chinese recipe book from my grandma's house which was stolen from my mother's house. Now I can't wait to try some Chinese cooking. More updates on this to come.