Sour Cream of Asparagus Soup with Tarragon

Every year or two, there’s a new version of cold asparagus soup in my kitchen. Recently, when asparagus was on sale for a song, I made it twice in one week and decided it was high time to update the recipe for the summer of 2022. Skip the sour cream for a lighter version; the soup’s great without it. And by the way, it’s luscious hot, too! Use a food processor to chop all the fresh vegetables except for the asparagus to save time. Lovely in a big bowl for lunch or for a picnic, this soup is nice as a first course soup in place of salad. Make a day ahead so it has time to chill thoroughly in the fridge.

6-8 servings

Ingredients

1 tablespoon EACH: salted butter and olive oil
1 ½ medium yellow onions, chopped coarsely
1 shallot, sliced thinly
3 medium carrots, trimmed, peeled, and sliced thinly
1 stalk celery with leaves, cut into small dice
1 fennel bulb, cored and cut into small dice
¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped
6 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon, divided (4 for the pot and 2 for garnish)
Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper
1 large, plump garlic clove, minced
½ cup dry white wine
6 cups chicken broth or more as needed to thin soup
2 pounds fresh asparagus, trimmed, and chopped into 2-inch pieces (Save trimmings in freezer for stock.)
1 cup fresh spinach (to keep the soup green)
4 drops hot sauce or to taste
2/3 cup sour cream or more to taste

Instructions

MELT THE BUTTER in an 8–10-quart soup pot set over medium-high flame and add the onions, shallot, carrots, celery, fennel, parsley and 4 of the tablespoons of fresh tarragon. Season with 1 teaspoon kosher salt and ½ teaspoon pepper. Sauté for 10 minutes; add garlic and cook another minute or two. Pour in the white wine and, stirring often, cook until the liquid is nearly evaporated.
POUR IN THE CHICKEN BROTH, cover, raise heat and bring to a boil. Uncover, reduce to a simmer, and simmer 10 -15 minutes or until vegetables are nearly tender. Add asparagus, spinach, and hot sauce; simmer another 10 -15 minutes or until all the vegetables, including the asparagus, are tender. Taste and adjust seasonings.
PURÉE the soup in the pot using an immersion blender or in batches in the food processor or blender (hold a towel down over the blender top). Taste and adjust seasonings again. If soup is too thin, simmer for several minutes to thicken. If too thick, whisk in some water or broth. Chill overnight. Whisk in sour cream. Taste and adjust seasonings one last time.
SERVE COLD garnished with the reserved tarragon. Alternately, you can skip adding the sour cream to the pot, and instead ladle the soup into bowls or cups, dolloping a little sour cream into each serving and topping with tarragon. Store 3-4 days in the fridge. Do not freeze if you’ve added the sour cream. Otherwise, freeze for 4-6 months.

Notes

Many thanks to my friend Jay Henry for the idea of adding fresh spinach to a vegetable soup to maintain a green hue instead of a dreary brown one!