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Asparagus Soup

A historical recipe from Mrs. Beeton's Dictionary of Every-Day Cookery The "All About It" Books, by Beeton, Mrs. (Isabella Mary).

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A historical recipe

Mrs. Beeton's Dictionary of Every-Day Cookery The "All About It" Books, by Beeton, Mrs. (Isabella Mary). Project Gutenberg eBook #50191.

From an old book: a historical recipe, not current advice. Its methods, additives and storage may be unsafe by today's standards.

Ingredients 3 ingredients

  1. 100 heads of asparagus
  2. 1 pint of water
  3. a pint of water salted

Possible health benefits

General information, not medical advice.

  1. Asparagus High in vitamin K · High in protein · Source of folate · +2

    High in vitamin K · 42 µg per 100 g, 55% of the reference intake per 100 g

    • Vitamin K contributes to normal blood clotting.
    • Vitamin K contributes to the maintenance of normal bones.

    Vitamin K is a nutrient that the body needs to stay healthy. It’s important for blood clotting and healthy bones and also has other functions in the body. NIH fact sheet

    High in protein · 2.2 g per 100 g, 44% of the energy from protein

    • Protein contributes to a growth in muscle mass.
    • Protein contributes to the maintenance of muscle mass.
    • Protein contributes to the maintenance of normal bones.

    Source of folate · 52 µg per 100 g, 26% of the reference intake per 100 g

    • Folate contributes to maternal tissue growth during pregnancy.
    • Folate contributes to normal amino acid synthesis.
    • Folate contributes to normal blood formation.
    5 more authorised claims
    • Folate contributes to normal homocysteine metabolism.
    • Folate contributes to normal psychological function.
    • Folate contributes to the normal function of the immune system.
    • Folate contributes to the reduction of tiredness and fatigue.
    • Folate has a role in the process of cell division.

    Folate is a B-vitamin that is naturally present in many foods. Your body needs folate to make DNA and other genetic material. NIH fact sheet

    Source of iron · 2.1 mg per 100 g, 15% of the reference intake per 100 g

    • Iron contributes to normal cognitive function.
    • Iron contributes to normal energy-yielding metabolism.
    • Iron contributes to normal formation of red blood cells and haemoglobin.
    4 more authorised claims
    • Iron contributes to normal oxygen transport in the body.
    • Iron contributes to the normal function of the immune system.
    • Iron contributes to the reduction of tiredness and fatigue.
    • Iron has a role in the process of cell division.

    Iron is a mineral that the body needs for growth and development. Your body uses iron to make hemoglobin, a protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen from the lungs to all parts of the body, and myoglobin, a protein that provides oxygen to muscles. NIH fact sheet

    Source of copper · 0.2 mg per 100 g, 19% of the reference intake per 100 g

    • Copper contributes to maintenance of normal connective tissues.
    • Copper contributes to normal energy-yielding metabolism.
    • Copper contributes to normal functioning of the nervous system.
    5 more authorised claims
    • Copper contributes to normal hair pigmentation.
    • Copper contributes to normal iron transport in the body.
    • Copper contributes to normal skin pigmentation.
    • Copper contributes to the normal function of the immune system.
    • Copper contributes to the protection of cells from oxidative stress.

    Copper is a mineral that you need to stay healthy. Your body uses copper to carry out many important functions, including making energy, connective tissues, and blood vessels. NIH fact sheet

    Nutrients per 100 g of “Asparagus, raw”, USDA FoodData Central.

Claims: EU Register of health claims (Regulation (EU) No 432/2012, © European Union, CC BY 4.0), shown only where the ingredient meets the claim's conditions (Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006). Nutrients: USDA FoodData Central (CC0). Facts: NIH Office of Dietary Supplements (public domain).

Cook safely

Keep children and pets away from the hob and the oven, and keep oven gloves and a lid within reach.

  • Boiling water and steam. Turn pan handles inward, away from the edge of the hob. Lift lids away from you, and pour hot water away from your body: steam burns too.
  • Sharp knives. Cut on a board that doesn't slip (a damp cloth under it helps), and curl the fingers of the hand that holds the food.

Method

  1. Ingredients.—100 heads of asparagus, 2 quarts of medium stock (see STOCK), 1 pint of water, salt.
  2. Mode.—Scrape the asparagus, but do not cut off any of the stems, and boil it in a pint of water salted, until the heads are nearly done.
  3. Then drain the asparagus, cut off the green heads very neatly, and put them on one side until the soup is ready.
  4. If the stock is not made, add the stems of asparagus to the rest of the vegetables;
  5. if, however, the stock is ready, boil the stems a little longer in the same water that they were first cooked in.
  6. Then strain them off, add the asparagus water to the stock, and when all is boiling drop in the green heads (or peas as they are called), and simmer for 2 or 3 minutes.
  7. If the soup boils long after the asparagus is put in, the appearance of the vegetable would be quite spoiled.
  8. A small quantity of sherry, added after the soup is put into the tureen, would improve this soup very much.
  9. Sometimes a French roll is cut up and served in it.
  10. Time.—To nearly cook the asparagus, 12 minutes.
  11. Average cost, 1_s.
  12. 9_d.
  13. per quart.
  14. Sufficient for 6 or 8 persons.
  15. Seasonable from May to August.

Plating

Cookware for this recipe

  • Saucepan
  • Chef's knife
  • Sieve
  • Colander
Source Public domain in the USA
Credit

From Mrs. Beeton's Dictionary of Every-Day Cookery The "All About It" Books, by Beeton, Mrs. (Isabella Mary). Digitised by Project Gutenberg, eBook #50191 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/50191). Public domain in the USA; its status may differ elsewhere.

What was changed: As printed, from the book's text; Project Gutenberg's header and licence removed. Ingredient lines were read out of the text by a program. A historical recipe, not current advice.