Grilled Asparagus with a Saucy Sauce & Crispy Croutons
what to cook in late spring
Allô! 👋
How can it be almost June when it was April just a few... weeks ago? Where has the month gone! Seems like only yesterday I was itching to get my hands on some asparagus and wild garlic. Now they've already come and nearly gone, not to be enjoyed fresh again until next year's spring.
Here, May was also the month of spruce tips, nettles, dandelion greens and morels, though I've yet to forage any of those. The local grocery stores have not had much locally-grown produce to offer yet, so a lot of what I've cooked has simply revolved around eggs and pantry items like whole grains, dried and canned legumes, frozen vegetables, and the season's first greens.
May's also been a month of doing all the things, which has meant posting a lot less on social media. Funny how sometimes doing more can look like doing less from the outside. In an ideal world, I think I would just cook and garden all day and not worry about having to document the whole thing at all. But then I wouldn't get to share what I'm doing with as many people, and I must admit I get as much joy from sharing as I do from nurturing and creating things.
Meanwhile, in the garden, every plant is giving off the energy of an out-of-practice performer excitedly getting ready for the big (summer) show. The strawberry plants are getting bigger and greener, and have just begun to produce their trademark delicate white flowers. Our blackberry and raspberry bushes are looking more vigorous by the minute. And our redcurrant shrub has already prepared a whole host of little green berries, ready to start ripening when the time is right.
The rhubarb plant in our garden is still so young that I've opted to let it grow big and strong before harvesting from it next year and in the springs to come. I chose to do this in part because I thought I'd have found some rhubarb in the stores by now — but still no luck. Still, with June comes the re-opening of our nearest farm shop, and I am bound to find some fantastic fruit and veg there while I patiently wait for my own to grow. I am also certain to notice less and less of spring's tender offerings, and more and more of summer's exuberant delights, so I'll have to make sure I favour the outgoing produce before it's too late.
So, before all the spring things have a chance to get growing, growing and gone, I encourage us all to savour and make the most of them while we can. I'm still finding new ways to enjoy asparagus, and that's the ingredient I've chosen to feature in this month's newsletter. Grilled, served with a tartar-meets-gribiche sauce, and topped with delightfully crisp croutons. I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I did.
Wishing you simply the best,
👋simone
it's late spring: what's in season? 🌿
Things over here are warming up slowly and getting brighter quite fast. Luckily, the produce currently at its peak seems to match perfectly what one wants to eat when things outside are blossoming and green ...or, you know, a bit wet and cloudy.
As late spring and early summer produce can overlap a fair bit (especially depending on your location and the particular year's weather conditions), I've included foods that are likely in season for you now as well as foods that are probably just about to come into season if they haven't already.
•••
In terms of fruits, vegetables and fungi, you'll generally want to be on the lookout for three kinds of foods:
delicate leafy things arugula, chives, coriander, lamb's quarters, lettuces, mint, nettles, parsley, purslane, ramps or ramsons (i.e. wild garlic), sorrel, spinach & watercress
green sturdy things artichokes, asparagus, broccoli, cabbage, fava beans, fiddleheads, garlic scapes, peas + pea shoots, rosemary, thyme, rapini & spring onions
pink crunchy things radishes, rhubarb & strawberries
•••
Not included in these categories — but still widely available nonetheless — are kohlrabi, new potatoes, mangoes and morels, as well as other varieties of mushrooms. Up next: stone fruit, baby!
In terms of animal foods, you may want to responsibly enjoy the following throughout the season: eggs, chicken, milk and fresh dairy, lamb, crab, trout, tuna & cod. Please consider buying organic and sustainably-sourced if you can find and afford it — it matters a lot for the wellbeing of the animals, the health of the environment and the health of whomever is working hard to raise and harvest your ingredients, as well as for the health of those enjoying your home-cooked meals.
from the site 🍓
mini rhubarb, strawberry & rose galettes
Don't toss out your limp rhubarb! Make the most of the season instead with these delicious mini rhubarb, strawberry and rose galettes.
a crispy chickpea caesar
Start by making the crispy chickpeas. Then, if you can resist snacking on them all, use them as a topping for a very crunchy and creamy salad.
beans on toast, two ways
Sure, canned baked beans are fine and nostalgic, but making your own beans on toast can be quick + easy (not to mention absolutely delicious).
cardamom & orange rhubarb cake
So you bought some fresh stalks of rhubarb and some yoghurt. Now what? Bake a cardamom-spiced and orange-scented rhubarb cake, of course!
saucy grilled asparagus
🍋
On May 17th, my partner and I went into Oslo to celebrate Norway's Constitution Day and enjoy the national festivities from within the capital. There were people dressed in nice suits and dresses and bunads waving about little Norwegian flags all across the city centre (us included), and everyone seemed genuinely excited about the children's parade, the marching bands, and the glorious sunshine alike — not to mention the hot dogs and soft-serve ice cream. Overall there was a great feeling of shared jovial festivity in the air, and it truly made the day quite special (we even saw the royal family! from a great distance, but still... they waved in our general direction).
While in Oslo for the day, we booked a celebratory meal at a snazzy restaurant I'd been eyeing for a while. There they served a four-course menu specially elaborated for the holiday. My non-vegetarian option started with grilled asparagus, served with a sauce gribiche, smoked salmon and micro greens. Needless to say, I immediately knew I wanted to eat something similar again (sans fish so my partner could taste it too).
•••
GRILLED ASPARAGUS WITH A SAUCY SAUCE AND CRISPY CROUTONS
serves two as a meal, four as an appetiser
INGREDIENTS
FOR THE "GRIBICHE", or grib-ish, if you like, SAUCE
• 2 eggs
• 100-150ml of rapeseed (canola) or sunflower oil you can use or substitute in some extra virgin olive oil too, but no more than 30ml if you're using a blender as you don't want the oil to get bitter from all the vigorous blending
• 1 generous Tbsp Dijon mustard
• 1 Tbsp white wine vinegar you could use apple cider vinegar or another sharp, pale acid like rice vinegar or fresh lemon juice if that's what you have on hand
• sea salt
• freshly cracked black pepper
• 1 Tbsp fresh parsley approx. volume once chopped
• 1 Tbsp fresh dill approx. volume once chopped
• 1 Tbsp fresh chives approx. volume once chopped
• 1-2 Tbsp gherkins, cornichons or sour pickles approx. volume once chopped — ideally not the sweet kind, but don't go out to buy gherkins just for this dish if you've already got sweet pickles at home!
note: though parsley and tarragon are the classic gribiche herbs, I chose dill because I like it and was aiming for a tartar-meets-gribiche sauce; so use any fresh herbs you like! gribiche also usually has capers in it but I didn't have any — aim for 1-2 Tbsp if you'd like to add some in
FOR THE REST OF THE DISH
• 1 shallot
• white wine vinegar (or whichever vinegar you chose for the sauce above)
• sea salt
• a few slices of dry old bread you can use fresh too if that's what you have
• extra virgin olive oil
• optional: a sprinkle of your favourite dried herb blend or a pinch of fresh chopped hardy herbs like sage, thyme or rosemary
• asparagus, whichever size you like, and as many spears as you think will suffice
• strips of lemon peel or lemon zest from a ½ lemon
• a small handful of fresh mint leaves
• freshly cracked black pepper
METHOD
1. Start by bringing a small-to-medium pot of water to a boil on very high heat. Reduce the heat to high, place the first egg in a large spoon, then quickly plunge it in the water before taking it right back out. Return the egg to the water, then repeat with the second egg. This is to prevent the shell from cracking due to temperature shock! Leave the eggs to "boil" (it's more of a strong simmer, really) for 8 minutes, before transferring them to cold water.
To peel, give each shell lots of little taps with the back of a spoon until it looks well crackled. After peeling off a first section with your fingers, give each egg a little dunk in the cold water to help loosen the shell further. The rest should easily peel right off, though you can also use the spoon to gently wiggle the shell and membrane apart from the egg by carefully gliding it along the egg's surface.
2. While the eggs boil, you can get a head start on the garnish. Peel and thinly slice the shallot, then place it in a bowl along with enough vinegar to cover it + a pinch of salt. Leave to pickle until you're ready to serve.
3. Once the eggs are peeled, slice each in half lengthwise. One by one, scoop the yolks out into a fine-meshed sieve or strainer placed over the container you plan to use to create the sauce. If you want to whisk it together manually, go for a medium-large bowl. If you prefer to use an immersion blender, opt instead for a tall narrow vessel.
Using the back of a spoon, push and scrape the yolks through the sieve and into the bowl. The aim is to create a sort of yolk powder, which will make mixing and whisking the yolks into the sauce much easier. If you don't have a strainer, you can also mash the yolks with a fork (though note that the result will be rougher). Chop up the remaining egg whites into smallish cube shapes and reserve them in the fridge.
4. Season the egg yolks with salt and pepper, about a pinch of each, then add in 1 heaping tablespoon of mustard and 1 tablespoon of vinegar. At this point you can either whisk everything together manually or use an immersion blender to do the job. I went the manual route, but you do you (one is evidently faster and less effortful than the other).
Once the egg, mustard and vinegar mixture has come together into a smooth paste, you may begin to add in the 100-to-150ml of oil bit by bit as you continue to vigorously mix the paste. Just a few drops at a time at the very beginning. Then a delicate drizzle, then a thin pour. You don't need to use all the oil, so only use as much as you like and let the sauce's consistency guide you. You are basically making a "cooked" mayonnaise here (no raw egg)!
Set the sauce aside in the fridge while you work on the croutons, asparagus, and garnish.
5. For the croutons, cut up the bread into small cubes and place them in a frying pan on medium-high heat along with a bit of olive oil and salt. You can also add some dried herbs from your favourite blend, or a few sprigs of rosemary, sage or thyme to perfume the bread. Toast on all sides until golden and crisp.
6. For the asparagus, fire up a grill or place a grill pan on medium-high heat. Leave to get hot. Then snap off the stiff end from each spear, and peel off the bottom segment of each spear if thick. Toss in a bit of olive oil and leave to grill until each spear has some nice char marks on it and is also tender all the way through when pierced with a knife (cooking time will depend on the size of your asparagus, but we're talking 10 minutes or less).
7. While the asparagus grills, finish the grib-ish sauce: chop 1 tablespoon's worth of parsley, 1 tablespoon's worth of dill, and 1 tablespoon's worth of chives, as well as 1 to 2 tablespoons' worth of gherkins and add them all to the sauce, along with the chopped egg whites from earlier.
8. To serve, spoon some of the sauce into the bottom of each plate. Top with a few asparagus spears then a small handful of croutons, before garnishing with the pickled shallot, lemon curls or zest, mint leaves, and some extra salt and pepper.
All that's left to do is enjoy! If you've got leftover sauce grib-ish left, it'll store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to two days.
Seeing as you're effectively making a sauce with a mayonnaise base here, you could also put some of the base aside and use it as a "cooked" homemade mayonnaise for another dish without any of the grib-ish add-ons :)
That's all from me this month!
See you next time 💛
This was a Substack edit of an archived newsletter. To read the newsletter in its original format, click here.