Asparagus has a distinctive aroma and taste that can be hard to match with wine.

Asparagus

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About Asparagus
Asparagus is the shoot of a perennial plant that looks like a fern, but it is unrelated to fern plants. It grows each spring from a sub-surface crown. Some cuisines use white asparagus which is produced by depriving the shoots of light. If the shoots are allowed to grow in light they turn green, or in some varieties, purple.

The plant has been used throughout recorded history in Europe and the Mediterranean lands. According to Wkipedia it is known in French and Dutch as asperge, in Italian as asparago in Portuguese as espargo hortense, in Spanish as espárrago, in German as Spargel, in Hungarian as spárga and in India as Ashadhi, Majjigegadde or Sipariberuballi.

The edible part of Asparagus is the new shoot with the buds. The stalks are picked before the leaves emerge from the buds.

Asparagus recipes

A food plant as widespread as asparagus has attracted many recipes. The basic method is to remove the tough part of the bottom of the stem, either by snapping or peeling and to plunge into boiling water for about 5 minutes. The aim is to keep the asparagus crisp. Overcooking will give you a limp grey mess.

You serve asparagus in a number of ways.

• Simply dressed with extra virgin olive oil and a splash of vinegar
• With a Hollandaise sauce
• Jamie Oliver suggests serving steamed asparagus with a lemon and anchovy butter
• Under a dressing of soy sauce with few drops of sesame oil
• In a Spanish omelet, substituting asparagusf or the potatoes
• In asparagus rolls wrapped in sliced bread with the crusts removed
• As part of an antipasta platter with smoked salmon
• Malaysian restaurants sometimes serve it with belachan sauce
• Stephanie Alexander suggests putting blanched asparagus on to the barbecue grill

Asparagus and wine

Now the tricky part. Asparagus has a strongish flavour that can overwhelm some wines. You need to take into consideration the sause as well. If you want to serve it with white, perhaps a robust Vermentino or a Viognier could be the go. Gewurztraminer wines are strongly flavoured and can be an ideal foil for asparagus. Among the red wines I would suggest a Barbera for its tartness, or perhaps a Petit Verdot

Clafoutis - a Traditional French Cherry Recipe.

Fresh cherries come into the shops in late spring and you can use them for this dish. However I like to make this dish all year round so I often use jars of pitted black cherries.

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Clafoutis recipe

Ingredients

Use fresh unpitted cherries if in season, other wise use well drained bottled or canned cherries.

• 500 grams cherries
• 3 eggs
• 1 Tablespoon of butter
• 1/4 cup caster sugar
• 1/2 cup Self Raising flour
• 1 cup of milk
• 1/2 cup cream
• 1 tablespoon of Kirsch or cherry brandy
• Extra cream for serving

Method

• Preheat your oven to 190 degrees.
• Butter a shallow heat proof serving dish, and spread the cherries evenly over the base
• Beat the eggs lightly. Add the caster sugar and the flour and stir gently. Gradually stir in the the milk, cream and brandy to make a smooth batter.
• Pour batter over the cherries.
• Bake for 25 minutes until batter has risen and the top is just starting to brown.
• Serve warm with the extra cream.

Wine Suggestion

This dessert will go well with a rich full flavoured sweet or semi sweet wine. Use a late picked Pinot gris, or perhaps a Gewurztraminer.

Variation
In late summer after the cherries are all gone you could use blackberries or raspberries.

Quinces have a beautiful evocative flavour and aroma that are preserved even when they are subjected to long cooking as in this recipe.

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Quince paste is a very handy thing to keep in your fridge. If you make a batch of a kilogram or so each year you will be able to jazz up your cheese boards occasionally until the next season comes around. It takes some time to make your own, you need to be watching and stirring for several hours. I like to make it on a wintry afternoon listening to some music.

This recipe is based on the recipe by George Biron, which is published in Stephanie Alexander’s Cook’s Companion.

Ingredients:

8 quinces, washed, cored and peeled
1 cup of water
Juice 1 lemon
Sugar

Method:

Retain about a quarter of the cores and pips. They add pectin which helps to get the paste to set.

Roughly chop the quinces and add them to the water, lemon juice and cores in a saucepan. Cover tightly and simmer gently for half an hour or so until the quinces are tender.

Process the cooked quinces and cores and pips until you get a fine pulp. Weigh the pulp and then add three quarters of its weight in white sugar.

Cook the mixture, uncovered, over moderate heat for 3 to 4 hours, stirring frequently. Beware of letting it getting too hot and spitting. When the mixture becomes firm so that it is hard to push the spoon around in it you can remove it from the heat and allow to cool for a few minutes.

Put the mixture into oiled shallow cake trays which have been lined with greaseproof paper. Dry on a sunny windowsill for a couple of days, or overnight in a very slow oven.

Cut into convenient size pieces and wrap in greaseproof paper for storage in airtight containers.

To Serve:

Quince paste is a superb addition to a cheeseboard. Its distinctive flavour is not overwhelmed by strong cheeses and its sweetness blends well with the sharpness of mature cheese. A dry aromatic Gewürztraminer is an ideal wine to serve with cheese and quince paste.