Heart to Hearth Cookery

White Asparagus

For those of the wealthiest status in the 17th century, white was a desired color for the table.  The whitest sugar for sugar plate, the whitest flour for bread, and the whitest salt for the table.  White asparagus (or sparrow-grass as it was frequently called in 17th century England) could be grown by gardeners by keeping the emerging spring stalk covered by dirt.  White asparagus is produced by the same plant that produces the green but the white are deprived of light so that chlorophyll (green) cannot be produced.  I am taking the cooked white asparagus from the kettle by the string that ties the bundle.  It will be served with a sauce prepared with cream, herbs, yolks of egg, and sugar.   Visit my website at www.hearttohearthcookery.com