Three-ish Things
Asparagus for dinner, almond cloud cookies, the best store bought vegetable broth (we had a taste-test!)
Greetings, everyone, and Happy Elizabeth Strout Day to all who celebrate! I read an early copy of The Things We Never Say back in March on my red-eye to Italy, and even though the plan was to read a chapter or two before drifting off to sleep, well, you can guess how that one ended up. I don’t think anyone is better at drawing you into characters’ inner worlds than Strout, even though at this novel’s core, she’s asking: Are we all ultimately unknowable, even to the people who love us the most? It wrecked me a little bit, I’m not going to lie, but that doesn’t mean I’m not giving the book to everyone I know.* One more thing before we get to your Tuesday dispatch: The good weather has put me in a good mood, so I was inspired to add a little bonus item to the bottom of today’s newsletter for paying subscribers. Sound the trumpets!! Here are your Three (ish) Things…
Thanks for the support, as always…
*Speaking of which: Hope you didn’t miss Friday’s Mother’s Day Gift Guide
1. This Week in Asparagus
Over the weekend, a fat asparagus bouquet in hand, I opened up my Recipe Index to search for that glorious green-gold Chilled Asparagus Soup at the top of this email, and was shocked to find that I hadn’t written about it before — or, well, not on Substack at least — the recipe did have its star turn in The Weekday Vegetarians. So here I am remedying my oversight. (You’re welcome!) Think of the soup as a sort of asparagus gazpacho, and therefore the most delicious when (a) asparagus is in season, (b) it’s a warm night, and (c) you pile on the garnishes, like homemade sourdough croutons and crispy fresh sprouts. It’s best after being chilled in the refrigerator for at least an hour, but I’ve had it at room temperature, too, and wouldn’t send it back. If you don’t think it’s enough for dinner — I get it — you can serve with a quinoa-edamame-red-onion salad tossed with my all-purpose vinaigrette.
Chilled Asparagus Soup with Croutons & Chives
Download the PDF here »
I’ve tweaked the recipe slightly since it was published in The Weekday Vegetarians: These days I reserve a stalk or two of asparagus before the rest goes into the blender. Then I chop up the stalk and add it as a garnish along with the croutons, chives, and other toppings.
2. A Good Char
It’s an age-old dilemma of vegetarian cooking: How does one achieve deep flavor when cooking without animal fat? I devoted a lot of words to the topic in both volumes of The Weekday Vegetarians, and I mostly concluded that it would behoove the aspiring vegetarian to get acquainted with umami-lending pantry staples like nutritional yeast, soy sauce, tomato paste, miso, and mushroom powder. But lately, I’ve noticed that I don’t need any of those ingredients if I’m charring my vegetables, a technique that lends a smoky, dare I say meaty, depth to whatever you’re working with. By charring, I do not mean burning: I mean a controlled blistering that creates a bitterness, sweetness, and deep umami all at once; I mean blasting something under a broiler or in a hot pan or over grill grates until it’s deep dark brown, taking it just to the very edges of blackened and burned. Exhibit A: The green beans you are looking at above were pan-seared in a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat with the tiniest bit of oil — I didn’t touch them for the first five minutes, which is how they get that beautiful sear. (I finished by tossing them with pesto and Parm.) Exhibit B: The Carrot Soup I can’t shut up about calls for charring the carrots in a Dutch oven set over medium-high heat before they get pureed into silky, smoky puree. Heaven.
3. Heaven-Sent Cloud Cookies
Over the weekend, after a stretch when I just could not motivate to cook — always disorienting for me when this happens — I made up for lost time and went kind of crazy in the kitchen. I prepared veggie burger patties and a fleet of grab-and-go mushroom-spinach-poblano breakfast burritos for the freezer. (Working on that recipe for you.) I developed and tested a sickkk pasta recipe inspired by a meal I had in Bari last fall. (Recipe coming this Friday!) I made vinaigrettes and rhubarb compotes and Herby Green Sauce from a bunch of cilantro that was seemingly minutes away from liquefying. And perhaps best of all, I baked a batch of King Arthur’s famous Almond Cloud Cookies. Have you ever made them? I never had, instead opting to pick up a dozen at our local BTW Bakery whenever someone gluten-free comes for dinner. You definitely do not have to be GF to adore them, though! The name is just right — they are chewy but airy and look ethereal with that dusting of powdered sugar. And I can personally, presently testify to their sublime-ness when paired with iced coffee on a sunny spring morning. I guarantee there’s a mother or mother figure in your life who would love to receive a beribboned box of them this weekend.
4. A Taste Test! What’s the Best Store Bought Vegetable Broth?
Earlier in the month, I did what I’ve been meaning to do ever since starting down my Weekday Vegetarian path: I invited my vegetarian friend and cookbook publisher Lia, her husband David, and their six-year-old daughter, Eliana, to join Andy and me for a vegetable broth taste test. With spreadsheets and number two pencils and everything! I wanted to know: Which broths have actual flavor and which ones taste more like, er, low tide? Are there any that go beyond merely tolerable and actually bring something tasty to the party? The goal was to see if the go-to brand I’ve relied on for years (for my soups, braised vegetables, curries, rice dishes and sauces) is indeed the best. Welp, I was completely surprised by the winner…