№ 44Zupa ar skostiņiem

Asparagus soup with egg yolk and mace Serves 4 · 40 minutes · Adapted from the 1796 recipe; not yet tested.

The book gives 2 egg yolks and half a spoonful of wheat flour, which converts to 2 and about ½ tbsp. The asparagus, broth and mace are unmeasured; those amounts are ours.

Ingredients

• 500 g asparagus, white or green (see Notes)
• 300 ml water
• 1 l beef or veal stock
• 2 egg yolks
• ½ tbsp plain flour
• A pinch of ground mace (about ¼ tsp)
• Salt, to taste (our addition)

Method

1. Snap or cut off the woody ends of the asparagus. Peel white asparagus, and thick green stalks, from just below the tip. Cut into 2–3 cm pieces. 2. Simmer the pieces in the water in a covered saucepan for 5 minutes. Don't drain them. 3. Add the stock and simmer for another 10–15 minutes, until the asparagus is very soft. 4. In a bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the flour to a smooth paste. Whisk in a ladle of the hot soup, then a second, and pour it all back into the pan, stirring. 5. Heat gently, stirring, until the soup thickens a little and just begins to simmer, then take it off the heat. Don't let it boil hard. 6. Stir in the mace, taste for salt and serve.

Notes

• What the book says vs. what we added: the book cooks the cut asparagus in water, pours meat broth over it, and when it is very soft beats in the yolks and flour, brings everything to the boil and finally adds a little pounded mace. It doesn't say whether the water is poured off; we keep it, as it holds the asparagus flavour. Warming the yolks with hot soup first (step 4) is our addition. The flour helps keep the yolks from curdling when the soup comes to a simmer, but a hard boil can still split it.
• Uncertain meaning: skostiņi is most likely asparagus (Tēzaurs records it as a regional word for it), but this isn't certain. The word also appears in 01-034.
• Texture: the thickening is light, so the soup stays thin: soft pieces of asparagus in a slightly creamy broth. The book cooks the asparagus much softer than we usually do today; for a fresher result, add the tips only for the last 5 minutes.
• Mace: the book pounds whole mace; ready-ground mace is fine.