The tips of deciduous trees are showing the barest tinge of green, and flowering fruit trees are in full bloom. A neighbor’s forsythia has come to life, bulbs are busily doing their thing. Spring has arrived.
At farmers’ markets on the West Coast, where I reside, peas and fava beans are showing up, and just last week, a few stalls were selling asparagus. Be still, my heart.
It’s a palpable thrill for an asparagus fanatic like me. The long wait is over. Let the feasting begin. Though it may be another month before the East Coast catches up, sweet spears from California are ready now.
For a first course, consider a salad to show them off. They make a pretty picture, paired with wedges of golden beets and tender butter lettuce. I love beets, but red seems wintry, somehow. Fortunately, it’s fairly easy to find bunched golden beets at most supermarkets, and they’re simple to cook (but do so a day — or several hours — in advance if you want to assemble this salad quickly).
Choose medium-thick asparagus spears, if you can, but any size is fine as long as they are shiny and smooth, with tightly closed buds.
