Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 pounds fresh asparagus or broccoli
1 onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons dry mustard
Pinch of cayenne powder
Sea salt (to taste)
Freshly cracked black pepper (to taste)
1 cup water
1 cup beer (if you don’t want to use beer, use 2 cups of water)
2 cups chicken or vegetable broth

In a heavy bottomed pot, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat. Add the asparagus, onion, and garlic. Toss the other 1 tablespoon of olive oil over the vegetables and stir. Saute for about 2 minutes, stirring to keep anything from taking on color. Add the mustard and cayenne powders, salt and pepper, and saute for another 3 minutes.

Add the water, beer, and stock, cover and allow to come to a slow boil. Turn the heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes or until the asparagus (or broccoli) is soft. Take the pot off of the heat, uncover, and allow to cool to around room temperature (about an hour).

Using a ladle, add an equal amount of soup and vegetables to a blender, filling the blender half way. Do not fill past the half way mark. Cover the blender and blend on medium until the soup is pureed. Transfer to a bowl and continue this process with the remainder of the soup.

Return the pureed soup to a pot, adjust seasoning if necessary, and heat on medium until warm. Serve with sprinkled parmesan cheese, croutons, and/or chopped fresh chives. When chopping at the beginning I like to save a few asparagus tops, cooking them separately and using them as a garnish along the top.

Serves 6