Spring asparagus soup made easy with Blendtec

When spring begins to flourish, spring vegetables become bountiful. From local farmer’s markets or popular grocery stores, in season vegetables can become the focus of any meal. Asparagus is a wonderful choice for spring. 

Sometimes during warmer temperatures, dishes move towards lighter fare. Soups move away from the heavier cream options. Asparagus soup is a lovely way to add variety to the spring vegetable. A simple soup can be light yet flavorful with a little twist from the barbeque. 

As fans of the Big Green Egg, the smokey notes from cooking on a ceramic smoker adds layers of flavors to asparagus. Instead of using traditional, blanched asparagus in a soup, this recipe incorporates lightly smoked asparagus into the recipe.

Smoked asparagus soup with smoked kielbasa

Ingredients:

·         2 pounds of asparagus

·         1 link kielbasa

·         1 cup chicken stock

·         Salt

·         Olive oil

·         Cracked black pepper

Instructions:

·         Drizzle asparagus with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. When Big Green Egg is at optimum temperature (around 200 degrees), place asparagus on a metal platter, grilling wok or other vegetable tray. Smoke asparagus for approximately 15 minutes. Asparagus should still be crisp, not completely soft. If space is available, place the kielbasa link on the smoker at the same time as the asparagus. If room is not available, place kielbasa on the smoker when asparagus is done cooking.

·         Remove asparagus. Reserve 12 asparagus tips to garnish soup. 

·         Cut asparagus into pieces. Place asparagus and chicken stock into a Blendtec blender. Using the soup setting, turn on blender. The Blendtec blender soup setting will blend and heat the ingredients into a creamy soup.

·         Since asparagus was seasoned prior to smoking, additional seasoning may not be needed. Season soup according to personal tastes.

·         Divide soup into four bowls. Garnish with pieces of the smoked kielbasa and reserved asparagus tips.

The smokey notes from cooking on a smoker make this soup filled with a depth of flavor. It is a different way to enjoy the spring asparagus. If you prefer a vegetarian option, substitute vegetable broth for chicken broth and remove the kielbasa garnish. 

The soup is extremely easy to make with a Blendtec blender. The newest Blendtec blender, the Blendtec 725, offers a soup setting. Simply add all the ingredients to the Blendtec and choose the soup option. This setting blends and heats the ingredients to make a ready to serve soup. The resulting soup is deliciously smooth. Since the soup is heated during the blending process, the soup can go directly from blender to the bowl to table. 

Additionally, the Blendtec blender is extremely easy to clean. By filling the blender with 2 cups of water and a drop of dish soap, the blender self-cleans on the pre-programmed clean setting. After the cleaning setting, empty and dry the unit. The Blendtec blender is ready for the next task. 

Blendec offers a variety of blenders. Units vary depending on options and settings. Prices are depend on the options of each blender. For more information on Blendtec and its blenders, please visit www.blendtec.com. 

Enjoy the bountiful spring vegetables in a variety of ways. From cooked to raw and side dish to entrée, variety of flavors and dishes will keep these vegetables appetizing all season long.