The most wonderful time of the year

By Kristin Fehlauer

Asparagus season is upon us once again. The English for Asparagus officinalis comes to us by way of Medieval Latin’s sparagus from the Greek asparagos, which may be related to the Greek spargan (“to swell”). Its German counterpart, Spargel, ultimately derives from the same root, but detoured to sparger (Late Middle High German) before arriving at its current form.

A few asparagus facts:

• Peru is the world’s largest exporter of asparagus, with sales of USD 420 million (32.7% of total asparagus exports) in 2016.
• The current Guinness World Record for the longest asparagus is held by Harry and Carson Willemse after they presented a stalk measuring 351.7 cm (138.5 in) in 2004.
• The vegetable has joined the world of competitive eating: on April 26, 2014, Joey Chestnut ate 12 lbs., 8.75 oz. of deep-fried asparagus spears in 10 minutes.

&nbsp

My favorite thing about asparagus is the seasonality of it. Every spring, we finally have a day where we dare to eat outside again. As we sit outside in the sun, happily munching on some tender shoots in the fresh air, each bite is all the more delicious because we know the experience is only temporary. In just a few weeks, we will have eaten all of this year’s harvest, and Spargel will quietly fade from the grocery store shelves and the restaurants – before we do the same all over again next year.

Green or white, drizzled with butter or hollandaise, in soup or quiche – there are a thousand variations of asparagus to sample and savor. How do you like your Spargel?