I am fortunate enough to be able to enjoy two asparagus seasons. Long before the thick and succulent Wye Valley harvest finds its way on to the shelves in London, I am tempted by the slender bundles of intensely-flavoured Gozo asparagus.
Of course, asparagus, like much else, is available all year round. A guest dining in London at one of her favourite places – where I had recently become consultant – was outraged that asparagus was off the menu in January, after I had ‘banned’ food which clocks up hefty air miles.
“But I can bring you some from my local Waitrose,” she wailed.
One of my favourite first courses at this time of year is a green vegetable aioli. I put bundles of vegetables, such as wedges of fennel, celery stalks and sticks of cucumber on a platter, and add broccoli florets, stick beans and asparagus spears, which I have first blanched thoroughly.
In the middle, I put a bowl of garlicky mayonnaise, made with sunflower or grape seed oil in the main and finished off with some extra virgin olive oil.
If you have any vegetables left the next day, especially cooked ones and asparagus, I like to sandwich them between slices of fresh wholemeal bread or in warm pitta bread with a well-seasoned, chopped-egg mayonnaise.
Risotto, crêpes, tarts, pies, vegetable casseroles, pizzas and even a charlotte-like loaf provide the perfect background to this luxury spring vegetable, as well as having the advantage of eking out its succulent stems.
A couple of my recipes are below: the aioli or loaf, together with one of the puddings, will nicely top and tail a spring lunch, perhaps for Easter? For the main course, I would choose a chicken or a piece of lamb to roast. And for accompanying wines, look either to France or to the New World. With the asparagus, a Sémillon/Sauvignon Blanc would be perfect and with the roast a Cabernet Sauvignon.
Another seasonal treat to look out for is the golden naspli or loquats. For a very brief period in spring, sometimes early, sometimes late, loquats are high on my shopping list, unless I can persuade a neighbour in Gozo to part with a few.
In London, the fruit arrives mainly from Spain, has a short season and is easily damaged in transit. When ripe, the skin changes from unblemished, smooth, bloomy and apricot in colour and develops brown patches. This is when the fruit is perfect, but the appearance puts off many buyers and it is often sold very cheaply.
Lovely in a simple compote or fool, loquats also make good sorbets, ice cream and jam. They can be substituted for apricots in many recipes, such as tarts and clafoutis.
They are perfect in that traditional British pudding, the crumble, especially when combined with almonds. This recipe can be adapted to most other fruits you would put in pies or crumbles.
But, with Easter on the horizon, I must share with you my recipe for an Easter cake, as it looks impressive yet could not be simpler to make.
Asparagus loaf
(Serves 6 to 8)
25g butter
Approximately 8 slices white bread, buttered
500g trimmed green asparagus, blanched for 5 minutes
150g hard cheese, grated
4 organic or free-range eggs
250ml milk
200ml double cream
Generous grating of nutmeg
Freshly ground black pepper
Butter a one-kilo enamelled terrine or metal loaf tin and line it, butter side in, with the slices of bread, abutting but not overlapping. Arrange the blanched asparagus spears in the case thus formed, top to tail, sprinkling grated cheese on each layer.
Beat the eggs, milk and cream and stir in the rest of the grated cheese, nutmeg and pepper. Pour over the asparagus and top with a lid of buttered bread.
Bake in a preheated oven at 180˚C, Gas Mark 4, for 45 to 60 minutes, depending on the depth of the terrine, until a knife point inserted into the custard comes out clean.
Allow to set for no more than a couple of minutes, otherwise condensation will make the bread soggy. Carefully turn out and slice when at room temperature or somewhat warmer.
I have tried improvements on this recipe, adding slices of cheese and potatoes and trying it with other vegetables, but the combination of bread, eggs, cheese and asparagus is perfect in its simplicity, as is the next recipe.
Fresh herbs, spring onions, young leeks, asparagus tips, baby spinach, rocket or peeled broad beans. Anything green and tender can go into this quick and easy lunch dish.
As the eggs cook so quickly, make sure that those vegetables that need it have been cooked or blanched first. I do not like al dente asparagus in omelettes.
You need: per person, two or three eggs, salt and pepper, a nut of butter and a generous handful of herbs or prepared vegetables.
Method
Crack one omelette’s worth of eggs into a bowl, beat lightly and season lightly. Heat the pan and drop in a nut of butter. When it is brown and sizzling, pour in the beaten egg, tilting the pan, lifting the egg as it sets, and swirling the unset egg around the pan.
Add the herbs or vegetables. The whole operation should take no longer than three or four minutes. When the omelette is set underneath but still juicy on top – or well-cooked if you prefer – fold it over and slide it on to a warm plate. Serve immediately. Omelettes are best made for one or two rather than a crowd.
Loquat and almond crumble
(Serves 6 to 8)
About 1kg loquats
2-3 tbsps elderflower syrup
Vanilla pod
100g flour
75g butter
50g ground almonds
75g soft brown sugar
50g flaked almonds
Remove the stalk end of the fruit and peel off the skin. Halve the loquat and discard the seeds. Simmer the fruit in the syrup for 10 to 15 minutes with the vanilla. Transfer the fruit to a pie dish or ramekins, removing the vanilla.
Rub the butter and flour together, stir in the ground almonds and sugar and half the flaked almonds, keeping the mixture loose. Spoon the crumble over the fruit and scatter on the rest of the flaked almonds.
Bake at 200˚C/400˚F/Gas mark 6 for 15 to 20 minutes. Serve hot or warm, with custard or thick, creamy yoghurt sweetened with elderflower syrup, ice cream or cream.
Baked loquats
Allow three loquats per person. Cut almost in half lengthways from the base and remove the stone. Fill the hollow with almond paste shaped to the size of the stone and pin the fruit together again with a sliver of vanilla pod. Arrange the fruit in half a hollowed-out bread roll or brioche or on a slice of bread brushed with melted butter, dot with a little more butter and sugar and bake for 30 minutes.
Pour on a little fruit eau de vie before serving, if you like.
Easter cassata
175g unsalted butter
175g caster sugar
175g self-raising flour or 175g plain flour sifted with 3 scant tsps baking powder
4 eggs
1 to 2 tbsps milk
This quantity makes a large cake, filling two shallow sponge tins, 18 to 19cm (7 or 7½ inches).
Grease and flour the tins or use a circle of baking parchment at the bottom and grease and flour the sides.
Cream the butter and sugar until soft and light. Add the eggs, lightly beaten, one at a time, alternating with the flour. It is best to beat the eggs in briskly, and gently fold in the flour.
Don’t try to mix in flour and eggs at the same time, as there will be more lumps, which means you will have to mix harder. To add the flour, I place a sieve over the mixing bowl and sift in a quarter at a time.
Once mixed, pour the cake batter into the prepared tins and tap them on the work surface to make sure there are no empty spots in the tins. Bake in the centre of the oven for approximately 30 minutes at 180˚C/350˚F/Gas mark 4, but check by inserting a skewer in the middle of the cake; when the cake is done, the skewer will emerge clean, without any batter adhering to it.
When fully baked, carefully turn the cakes out on to a wire rack or several folds of clean towel and allow them to cool completely before filling and decorating.
Filling:
225g carton ricotta
Sifted icing sugar, to taste, plus extra for the glaze
2 tbsps chopped candied peel
2 tbsps coarsely grated chocolate, dark or white
Topping:
Redcurrant jelly or sieved lemon marmalade
225g white marzipan
Green food colouring
Lemon juice
Small confectionery Easter eggs
Put the ricotta in a bowl and sweeten it if you like, with a little sifted icing sugar and stir in the candied peel and chocolate. Spread the ricotta filling on one half of the sponge and place the other on top.
Before rolling out the marzipan, brush surface of the cake with jelly, which will provide a nice tacky surface to hold the marzipan in place.
Make a few pinholes in the surface of the marzipan and add spots of green food colouring, but very sparingly. Knead this well in until you have a uniform colour.
Roll the marzipan into a ball, then flatten it slightly and roll out between two sheets of clingfilm to prevent it from sticking and carefully lay it over the cake. The glaze is simply icing sugar mixed with sieved lemon juice until you have a pouring consistency with no lumps.
The trick is to quickly cover the cake with this in one go so that it dries smooth. The delicate green marzipan will show through its veil of water icing. To decorate, roll out thin strips of the green marzipan trimmings and weave into three nests. Place the eggs in each nest.