Will the Real Asparagus Please Stand Up?

Asparagus is available year-round, shipped from the other hemisphere, and is always considered a bougie veg option. But I'm only hungry for it in the spring, and then I’m ravenous...

A sure sign of spring for me is this pasta dish from an old Washington Post column that stayed on my ‘fridge labeled “Dinner Tonight.”

Spring is here officially but the usual harbinger I’m used to in Pennsylvania is weeks—maybe months— away in Wyoming. Asparagus is not likely to sprout up through the snowbanks here in Alpine. Luckily there’s California asparagus available in the grocery stores now, which keeps me mindful of the season while I throw another log on the fire.

Asparagus officinalis is a member of the lily family, the Liliaceae, which also includes onions and leeks.  It is an interesting plant because it does not have leaves similar to other plants but photosynthetic branches, or phylloclade, that grow in clusters near the top of the stem.  If the stem is unpicked, the phylloclade develop into little branchlets that sprout feathery ferns.

Asparagus farmer at the Longmont CO farmers market in April 2018.

Asparagus originated on the coast of the Mediterranean and the riverbanks of southern Europe, the Crimea, and Siberia.  It has been cultivated since ancient times by the Greeks and Romans and was so much a part of the Roman culture that Emperor Caesar Augustus coaxed his men to hasten, using the metaphor “enough time as it takes to cook asparagus” to inspire speed.

Asparagus devotees often form opposing camps on several key issues:  white or green, fat or thin.  The white asparagus camp has roots in a European preference for an ivory shoot with a faintly earthy texture accomplished by mounding the earth over the growing spears and blocking out the sun’s rays. White asparagus tends to be thicker, and the skin must be peeled before cooking.  The flavor is sweet and subtle and enthusiastically enjoyed by southern Germans, especially at their Spargelfests (asparagus festivals), which feature the vegetable on special asparagus-studded menus.

Homegrown asparagus comes in different shapes and sizes. These spears were gathered by my PA neighbor, BJ Mincemoyer, back in May 2014 when she was a spry 87-year-old.

Another issue, fat or thin, has historically been a cause for debate.  Asparagus cultivated by the Romans near Ravenna in Italy grew so fat that one spear weighed nearly three-fourths of a pound.  Wild asparagus was much thinner and held in high esteem by Pliny the Elder who lamented in 77AD that “Nature ordained that asparagus should grow wild so that everyone may pick it, and now they are farming it!”  Also, about that time, chariots and runners rushed asparagus to the snowline of the Alps so it could be frozen for the Feast of Epicurus six months later, in an early effort that used freezing to extend the highly-esteemed vegetable’s season.  Truly, the matter is no more than a taste preference, since those pencil-thin stems are not an indicator of youth. Stems that are medium-sized or thick are more succulent and juicier than their thin counterparts.  A snazz factor can be added to thick asparagus by peeling the outer skin from the lower half of the stem, though at a loss of some beneficial fiber.

Since you have read this much, I assume you are a true asparagus aficionado and I can safely broach a third delicate issue.  You may have noticed that asparagus acts as a diuretic and has a lingering olfactory effect on the elimination process that is evident even 15 minutes after eating the vegetable.  In the plainer language of French physician Dr. Louis Lemery, in 1702, “They cause a filthy and disagreeable Smell in the Urine, as every Body knows.” Odorous methyl mercaptan is the culprit, though only 22% of the population can detect the sulfurous compounds.

The following recipe is based on one I received from my friend Moira Weldon who clipped it from the Washington Post in 1992.  I have doubled the amount of asparagus from the original recipe and I add it to the pasta in the last few minutes of cooking, much longer here in Alpine, WY than at sea level. It has been a mainstay of asparagus appreciation in our household ever since.

Penne with Asparagus and Walnuts accompanied by a quick Cherry Tomato Bruschetta.

Penne with Asparagus and Walnut Sauce

Serves 6

2 teaspoons salt

1-pound penne

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

6 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

4 garlic cloves, chopped

2 pounds asparagus, cut into one-inch1/2 segments, tips reserved

½ cup of chopped parsley

¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Freshly ground pepper, to taste

½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Bring five quarts of water to a boil in a deep pot and add the salt and the penne.  Stir to separate the pasta.  Boil according to package directions.  While the pasta is cooking, heat a sauté pan and dry toast the walnuts slightly.  Remove to a pasta bowl when golden brown and fragrant.  Add the olive oil and butter to the saute pan and heat.  Add the garlic and cook briefly.  When the pasta is still not fully cooked, three minutes before the end of its recommended cooking time, add the cut asparagus stems and cook for 2 minutes.  Add the tips and cook for another minute.  Put the parsley and the crushed red pepper into the pasta bowl with the nuts.  Drain the pasta and asparagus and place it in the pasta bowl on top of the walnuts, parsley, and pepper flakes.  Add the garlic mixture, the freshly ground pepper, and the Parmesan cheese.  Toss well to combine.  If desired, serve with additional grated Parmesan.  This dish is good both hot and at room temperature.

Blistered Tomato Bruschetta topped with some spare parsley from the pasta dish.

Blistered Tomato Bruschetta

Tomato season is not for many months but this simple little dish fills in well. The recipe comes from the Center for Science in the Public Interest’s 2024 Good Foods calendar. If you don’t know the Nutrition Action magazine and you care about good food, your health, and the environment, check their website. There are no ads so the articles are unbiased and cover the latest health research.

1-pint cherry tomatoes

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

¼ teaspoon kosher salt

Pinch of red pepper flakes

Whole grain toast for serving

Rinse and dry the cherry tomatoes. Heat the olive oil in a saute pan over medium-high heat and add the tomatoes. Shake the pan now and then and cook until the tomatoes blister and burst, about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from the heat, add the garlic, salt, and pepper flakes, and mash up the tomatoes with a fork. Serve over toast.

Portions of this column ran previously in the State College Centre Daily Times in 2000. Asparagus is timeless!