“Asparagus inspires gentle thoughts.”
So said the poet Charles Lamb. And although he has been dead for well over a century I worry for him. Firstly, what is a gentle thought? Frollicking lambs, sleeping infants, lapping waves - those are the sorts of things that spring to mind. But surely not asparagus.
Speargrass, spargel, esparrago, asperge, asparago, espargos - whatever you call it, its far from gentle in appearance or inclination. For a start once the plant gets rolling, in its second year asparagus spears shoot up as much as 10 inches in 24 hours. This is a family column so I won't draw attention to what it resembles. But gentle thoughts - methinks not!
Anyhow in our house as of last night, asparagus has achieved god-like status. Freddie likes the fact they looked like spears. I served them with melted butter and lemon juice. And we haven't looked back since. So we are now planning to emulate the Germans and hold our own home spargelfest. Why didn't I serve him them to him as a toddler?
Please keep your asparagus recipes flying in....
