asparagus you can't not love

          

I've never really been a picky eater. For one thing, I was not really allowed to be too picky... growing up, I was required to try anything I thought I didn't like at least once a year. 'Your tastes change as you grow up,' my mom would say, and even though five-year-old me definitely didn't believe her, guess what? She turned out to be right. (Moms are apparently really smart. Who knew.) 

While my mom took the approach of making me try things periodically, she had an ally of her cause who had a different method of getting me to eat my veggies. My grandma, like any good grandma, said heck with it - let's just add sugar to everything. Grapefruit? Tomatoes? Sugared and gobbled up. And veggies got an extra treatment: cream.

It seems like a common thing for German-Americans in the Midwest to cream their veggies. Maybe that's just my experience, but I know that my family and friends from small German towns never raise their eyebrows or wrinkle their noses when I talked about creamed asparagus. In fact, for many, many years, I'd never eaten asparagus any other way. It's what I grew up on, and probably the reason I love asparagus so much now (though my culinary horizons have broadened considerably, and I now love my asparagus prepared just about any way!). 

Making creamed asparagus isn't rocket science... which is probably why I'm notoriously bad at never measuring anything when making it. But the basic steps are cutting fresh asparagus stalks into 1-inch sections, putting them in a pan, adding just enough water to cover the bottom, and steaming them until crisp-tender. In a separate dish, stir together a small amount of cornstarch (perhaps a teaspoon?) and a bit of milk (1/3 C?). Add this to the pan and heat until simmering and thickened slightly. Season with salt, pepper, and sugar to taste. Serve over hot toast, and enjoy!

This is something I grew up eating all spring and summer long, while asparagus is in season. Sometimes, we'd drive down country roads to cut the asparagus that grows wild in the ditches. And of course it was a garden staple as well. These days I'm stuck picking up freshly cut bunches at the farmers market, but that's hardly a bad option! However you come by it, I promise this is a winning way to make it. I know that if I ever have kids of my own, they'll be happy I've passed down the recipe my grandma taught me.

Cheers!