Saturday, April 23, 2011

It's that time of year again

Asparagus season. April and May are when our local asparagus is in its full glory. The local stuff is white, which means that the shoots are covered with dirt and not allowed to see the sun. They don't develop chlorophyll, and that keeps them from turning green.

The first, and hopefully not the last, asparagus tart of the season.

One of our favorite dishes to make this time of year is the asparagus tart. It's cooked spears of asparagus wrapped in slices of ham and baked in a cheesy egg custard inside a pie shell. Pure heaven!

I got some asparagus from the market last week at five euros a kilo. Then I found some at the supermarket for three-fifty a kilo. And those were just as local, from Châtillon-sur-Cher, not far down the road from us. A much better, and more normal, price in my opinion.

The painting is going well. On Friday I began the top-coat painting by doing all the corners and edges around the doors and moldings. Today I will be rolling the walls proper. I'm hopeful that the first coat will be the last, given how much priming we did. Wish me luck!
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15 comments:

  1. Craig23 April, 2011 09:11

    That tart looks delicious! Well done.

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  2. Geoffrey23 April, 2011 14:35

    that looks great, now I want to make something like that... there goes the diet.

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  3. Thickethouse.wordpress23 April, 2011 15:28

    Transformations are such a joy. I know you'll be glad when it's over. Meanwhile, be careful of your neck.

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  4. A Lewis23 April, 2011 18:34

    They are in my Top 5. For sure.

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  5. Moving with Mitchell23 April, 2011 20:04

    It looks delicious (and it's a work of art). Lots of luck with the painting.

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  6. Peter23 April, 2011 22:42

    That looks mouth watering, and I'm sure it is. Have to make some soon.

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  7. Starman23 April, 2011 23:02

    That tart looks really great. Recipe to follow?

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  8. The Beaver24 April, 2011 02:39

    @ Starman

    the recipe is here:

    http://wcs4.blogspot.com/2007/04/tarte-aux-asperges.html

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  9. Ur-spo24 April, 2011 08:05

    I had my first spears last Night , very good !

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  10. chm24 April, 2011 13:19

    Starman and Cousine,

    Your link for the asparagus tart recipe didn't work for me. Here is one that I called and it worked:

    http://wcs4.blogspot.com/search?q=tarte+aux+asperges

    You go down to April 16, 2007 for the recipe. Good luck!

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  11. BosGuy24 April, 2011 15:35

    I like just about anything with asparagus. I have to admit one of my favorite ways to enjoy them cooked is grilled w/ olive oil, a bit of lemon juice and salt.

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  12. Ohiofarmgirl24 April, 2011 15:49

    wow!!! and me with some asparagus and now i know what to do with it. thanks for the inspiration as always...and congrats on your anniversary of buying the house! i loved Ken's telling of the tale
    :-)

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  13. Starman24 April, 2011 18:26

    Merci, beaucoup, monsieur !

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  14. paradykes25 April, 2011 04:43

    The tarte looks devine! I'm going to try it this week.

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  15. Miss N.27 April, 2011 21:36

    J'ai presque le désir de goûter un peu de ça. Mais je déteste cette légume...

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