Asparagus Soup with Crispy Prosciutto & Parmesan
I think I'm a pretty self aware person, and I can be pretty honest with myself when it comes to identifying flaws and personal shortcomings. Not in a bad way where I like pick myself apart, but more of a "this is your issue, you have no one else to blame, and how are you going to get over it" kind of thing. Like have you ever met a person that just victimizes themself at all times? Like in their eyes, there's always someone else to blame for the fights they get into with friends, their weight, their depressing mood, and all the rest of life's problems? To me there is nothing more annoying, and I just really make an effort to not be that person. The result is making it a habit to not blame everyone else for what may be bringing me down, and I genuinely try to identify how I've contributed to the poor situations I may find myself in, or my personality traits that hinder my quality of life.
One of my personal flaws that I fully recognize is that I care so much about what other people think. Whether it be to my face or behind my back, I take a vested interest in the opinions of others. I think every action I take there is this little twinge of but what will people think? What will people say & it has been fucking exhausting. & it is why I get such hurt feelings when someone says something mean to me. I try not be too sensitive ((that's me identifying the role I play in this situation), but gosh it sucks and it totally plays into my habit of caring too much about what other people think. To give a shit about everyone else is really taxing, and I feel like it's what has been my personal blocker to exuding happiness at times. With 30 being right around the corner and really taking a more granular look at what I want my life to be like in 5 years (what I want me to be like in 5 years) I've realized I really can't spend so much time invested in what other people think. My approach has shifted to more actively evaluating my quality of life, and asking myself why someone else's opinion matters. Or why I would ever let anyone influence my actions and ever-arching optimism about my own life. Personal mantras are my favorite thing to keep me on track with my goals, and mine has become "Lesley is just worrying about Lesley." Every time I can repeat that to myself, it's my personal reminder to just take a look at my life, evaluate my personal happiness, and not give a fuck about what other people may say, think, or god forbid judge. I have been making a concentrated effort to focus on me, my happiness, and the wellness of my relationships, and taking these steps has been freeing. It's lead to moments where I can revel in my own personal happiness, and again just let Lesley worry about Lesley.
& though I'm so happy with this type of self growth, I'm not impervious to what other people say. I think yesterday was a challenging day for me. I have one person in my life who often puts me on the receiving end of their passive aggressive remarks. It's funny they say, or they didn't mean it like that. It's fucking rude is what it is. Has anyone else gone through that? Voiced feelings about not appreciating the words said to them, and it's excused by "they didn't mean it like that" or "it was a joke"? I mean who know maybe I am overly sensitive, but at the same time I've also gained a self-awareness that I wouldn't want anyone to feel beaten down by my passive aggressive comments. We all have our moments, but repetitive behavior of saying hurtful things to someone masked as a joke is just pretty fucking sad. & in my opinion the actions of someone who needs to focus on bringing joy to their own life. I want my words and actions to uplift, support, and just confirm to the people in my circle that I care and that I am so genuinely happy for them in their proudest moments. Like for example, if my friend starts a new business, gets a 6 pack, or purchases a fierce new Louis Vuitton, sure maybe a part of me will be jealous, but I'm also genuinely excited for them. That's something I never want to be compromised by envy, or my inability to focus on my own life. I want my friends, family, and the people closest to me to know I will always be an encouraging force and advocate for them. That's my intention, and I have this current nay-sayer who likes to throw passive aggressive comments my way in moments when I'm fiercely proud of myself to thank for giving me that self-realization.
As mentioned, I had a challenging day yesterday where it was like this nay sayer got involved, I had lots on my plate to begin with, and this nay-sayer just further irritated me. It put me in the saddest mood. Like the wind was going to blow the wrong way and I was going to start crying. But I recognized it was a bad day, I kind of distanced myself from others to avoid any bystanders getting caught in the crossfire of my bad mood, and I had my moment of where I realized letting the actions of someone else negatively impact me is so stupid. & I said to myself - just let Lesley worry about Lesley, & I started living for me again. I got my ass to the gym, thought about all the good elements of my life, and made a healthy & delicious soup for a little self care pick me up. & that is what I call turning things around!
I am seeing asaparagus everywhere, and I just want to keep buying bunches of it to cook with. I just love those thin little greens when they're roasted and crisped up to perfection, but I'm doing something new with asparagus - turning it into soup. Asparagus Soup with Crispy Prosciutto & Parmesan, appropriately nicknamed the soup that will surely make your pee smell. The recipe that was my inspiration was like a cream of asparagus kinda thing, but in tasting my version, me and Jordan were totally reminded of split pea soup. We are super down with that, so we were obsessed with this stuff! I added way more broth to keep it light and soupy, & all sorts of yummy extras to give my dinner so many happy layers of flavor, and it did not disappoint.
The first soup extra - a soft boiled egg. Because that runny yolk is good in so many soups and not just ramen! Have you ever had an asparagus side dish with hard-boiled or runny eggs on top? If not that's what you should try next with asparagus because it is delightful. Eggs & asparagus are just a match made in heaven, & this soup has them paired to bring so many yummy bites. Next I added in a sprinkle of parmesan, because melty cheese in hot soup is also totally perfect. The last little add in is my favorite thing - crispy prosciutto. Like oh my god I'm never cooking bacon again because crispy prosciutto is so perfect. It crisps up so quick and with no mess in the oven, and it's the perfect crunchy bite. Me and Jordan were just snacking on them once they came out of the oven to the point we had to stop ourselves so we had enough for the soup.
The toppings and add-ins are so delicious, but the base of the soup really is creamy asparagus perfection. I mean it tastes like asparagus, so make sure that's a veggie you like if you're going to make this soup, but really it's such a yummy transformation of the vegetable. It's also probably the quickest soup I've ever made. Probably 20 minutes of prep and cook time until you blend it up, so easily a 30 minute meal. I mean I do like to let my soup sit and cook on low as long as possible so all the flavors really get to know each other, so I did let my soup cook on low for 30 more minutes after blending, but that's not a critical step if you're in a dinner rush. All in all a perfect spring soup and pick me up on an evening when I just wanted to do me, a night when I just wanted Lesley to worry about Lesley, and this scrumptious little treat was so good & just what I needed.
For the Soup
2 tbsp butter
1 yellow onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
1 c. dry white wine
2 big bunches of asparagus, trimmed and cut into 2 inch pieces
5 c. chicken broth
1/4 c. heavy cream
Salt and pepper
Sliced prosciutto (at least 2 ounces)
Parmesan cheese, for sprinkling
Ciabatta or baguette
Start by placing your dutch oven or other soup pot over medium heat. Add in two tablespoons of butter and let it melt. Once the butter is melted, add in the onion and garlic, letting them cook for about 8 minutes (until the onions are translucent). Cook the garlic and onions and stir occasionally to make sure they don't burn. Once the 8 minute cook time is up, add in the white wine to deglaze the pan, scraping all the brown bits off the sides and the bottom of the pan. Let the wine simmer with the onions for 5 minutes.
Next step is to add in the asparagus and the chicken broth along with a pinch of both salt and pepper. Turn the heat up to high and bring the soup to a boil, letting it boil uncovered for 15 minutes.
As the soup boils, lay a piece of parchment on a baking sheet. Lay the sliced prosciutto on the baking sheet in a single layer, and bake it in the oven for 12-15 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove the entire baking sheet from the oven once the prosciutto has finished cooking (it will be crinkled and a much deeper color when removed from the oven), and let it cool on the hot baking sheet.
Once the prosciutto finishes cooking, turn off the heat beneath and soup and let it cool for about 15 minutes.
Next, bring a medium sized pot of water to a boil. Add 1 egg for every bowl of soup being served, so for us it was just two. Place each egg carefully in the boiling water, lowering it in the water with a spoon to make sure the egg doesn't crack. Let the eggs boil for 6 minutes. While the eggs boil, fill a medium sized bowl half-way with ice & water to create an ice bath. After the eggs have cooked for 6 minutes, immediately remove the eggs from the boiling water and place them directly in the ice bath. Let them sit in the ice bath to cool.
Now move back to the soup. Get out your immersion blender and puree the asparagus soup until it is totally smooth, and to get it totally silky smooth means immersion blending for 5 or 6 minutes. Once the soup is totally blended, stir in the heavy cream. Taste the soup and add in any more salt & pepper if needed. Place the soup back over low heat, covered, and let it continue to cook until you're ready to heat.
The next steps are to break up the prosciutto by crumbling it into small little chips to sprinkle over the soup, and to then peel your eggs. You'll want to remove the eggs from the ice bath, crack and peel them oh so gently.
To get your soup ready to eat, fill soup bowls with a couple scoops of the warm asparagus soup. Sprinkle a pinch of parmesan over the top of the soup. Halve each egg over the soup bowl, and gently place each egg on top of the parmesan with yolks up so that it floats towards the top of the soup. Sprinkle the prosciutto bits and just a sprinkle of black pepper on top of each egg for a final touch. Serve each bowl of soup alongside a piece of crusty bread for dunking and it's dinner perfection.
