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Fresh Asparagus Soup with Mushrooms of the Season
Recipe by: (serves 8)

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, sliced
3 lbs. fresh asparagus spears
2 medium baking potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled

6 cups DK Chicken or Vegetable Stock
1 Tbsp salt
pinch cayenne pepper

4 oz (one small bunch) fresh spinach

1 cup skim milk

1 lb assorted seasonal mushrooms (morels, oyster, shiitake, chanterelle)
2 large shallots, minced
1 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves

Method:
Heat the olive oil in a four-quart saucepot. Add the onions and sweat over low heat until wilted, not colored. Meanwhile, remove the tough end pieces from the asparagus stalks (about two inches from the bottom), and discard. Remove the tips (2 inches from the top), and set aside. Add the middle sections of the asparagus stalks to the saucepot, sweat 5 minutes, and add the chicken stock, potatoes, salt and garlic. Bring to a boil then lower to a simmer for 45 minutes. Add the reserved tips, and cook 5 more minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly.

Place the spinach in two quarts of rapidly boiling salted water, then immediately remove and purée in the blender. You should have a smooth, vivid green paste. Set aside. In the same blender, purée the soup. Add in the spinach purée, season to taste with the salt and cayenne pepper, and strain through a wide-mesh strainer or china cap.

Meanwhile, sauté the mushrooms and the minced shallots in the tablespoon of butter for five minutes, or until wilted. Add the fresh thyme leaves, season to taste, and set aside.

To serve, reheat the soup with the cup of skim milk, taste for seasoning, and pour into bowls with the sautéed mushrooms in the center.

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