ottawa foodies

I haven't been poking around the shops that much in the last week, so I want to leverage the collective knowledge of Ottawa Foodies to get my answer ;)

Since my fiancée and I are leaving for Europe next Sunday (yay), it is extremely important that I gorge myself on asparagus this week, lest I miss it. Sure, they have asparagus in Europe, but that's not the point.

Has anybody seen any Ontario asparagus in grocery stores yet? How about the Market? I plan on doing the walk-around after work today and hoping for the best.

I picked up some Ontario asparagus at the Byward market yesterday. It seems to be trickling in now.

Mine isn't up yet - just emailed the wife to see if maybe she moved it last year. Odd, because it should be up.

Europeans have that ghastly white asparagus. Gawd that's terrible stuff :-(

Pasta lover - Awesome! That settles my menu for the next week.

Zym - I'm actually quite surprised at how they prefer the white stuff to the green stuff. Shouldn't the depth of flavour that the green has over the white lend itself to more unique preparations, sauces, etc.?

And green asparagus looks far better under a béchamel than the white does.

Zym - Never understood the white asparagus thing... First I find they have very little flavour, and second, in my mind they are "freaky" asparagus, they look like they've been grown without light... where is that lovely green tastiness?

Momomoto - I love asparagus! Although it is great now that we can buy it year round, nothing beats fresh tender local greens... Lets see
DAY ONE
* Eggs Benedict with Asparagus & Hollandaise
* Asparagus Sandwiches
* Asparagus with Butter & Lemon
DAY TWO
* Asparagus Omlette
* Asparagus Soup
* Asparagus Fettucine with Salmon
DAY THREE
* Asparagus Timbales
* Asparagus Salad
* Asparagus Stir-Fry
DAY FOUR...
[[ F&T drifts off in a foodie haze ]]

They have been grown without light. That's how they make it white. Someone once told me the pile up the dirt as it grows, so that only the very tip is ever sticking. My big question is : why? Oh well, to each their own I guess :-)

Momomoto you're welcome! Have fun OD'ing on asparagus before your trip. Heck I am already OD'ing on asparagus and I'm not going anywhere!

Food&Think "[[ F&T drifts off in a foodie haze ]]" Haze? It sounds like paradise to me! BTW what do you put in your asparagus sandwich besides asparagus?

Fiddleheads are also out in the Byward market now. Another good early crop.

We had our first crop of asparagus in the garden a couple of weeks ago. It was our first harvest, and I was surprised that it was so early. We typically steam them or roast them on the barbecue.

Zym - Je ne sais quoi... It's a French thing! Actually much admired by the French, "Spargel" (the name for white asparagus) is actually a German thing.

Pasta Lover - It's the Brit in me... Tea sandwich style of course... rolled out bread, cream cheese and an asparagus tip, then roll it up tight. If you got the time (or company) chill and slice, if not just eat it as is.

Inkling - Fresh Fiddleheads, now that is officially the first sign of Spring's bounty.

I've never tried the white asparagus, but I used to hate the green ones. They always tasted "grassy" to me, and usually had a mushy taste even when they weren't overcooked. Until I tried them roasted with garlic, lemon and olive oil. Now I can eat them!

My sister-in-law makes awesome dilled asparagus pickles. She has a huge asparagus bed and was trying to find ways to use them up. She cans and spices them up just like baby cukes.

Curses! Hartman's didn't have any Ontario asparagus, so I guess I'll just have to wait.

At least spinach frittata is just as good as asparagus frittata.

Just to nit-pick "Spargel" in German just means "Asparagus" - could be either white or green. I always nitpick things German :-)

The Byward Fruit Market had wild asparagus this weekend. Got myself one bundle and a morel..... can't wait for the butter to hit the frying pan.

BTW, if your looking to buy morels they get them in but they go fast. They were down to their last 3 when I was there today... but I expect they will get more in later this week.

Cheers