Asparagus Tips in Puff Pastry Lemon Butter Sauce

serves six as a first course

Ingredients for the asparagus and puff pastry:

• 18 to 24 asparagus spears (depending on size)
• 2-3 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon minced scallions or shallots
• salt & pepper
• 6 puff pastry rectangles, about 2½ by 5 inches, ¼ inch thick (6½ by 13 cm, ¾ cm thick)
• egg glaze (1 egg beaten with 1 teaspoon water)

Ingredients for the lemon butter sauce:

• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons dry white vermouth
• salt & white pepper
• 1 stick chilled butter (115 gram), cut into 12 fingertip-size pieces

Instructions for asparagus:

• trim ends of asparagus; if necessary, peel from butt to tip to remove tough outer skin
• boil asparagus 5 - 8 minutes (depending on quality) until cooked through
• immediately remove asparagus and arrange on paper towel in one layer
• cut tip ends down to appr. 5 inches (13 cm)
• asparagus may be cooked in advance; when cold, wrap and refrigerate.

Just before serving, when the pastry is baked and ready:

• melt 2 - 3 tablespoons of butter in a frying pan that is large enough to hold the tips in one layer
• add the shallots or scallions and cook for a moment, then add the asparagus tips
• roll the asparagus tips over to coat them with butter
• season lightly with salt & pepper, then roll again

Instructions for puff pastry:

• preheat oven to 450 °F (230 °C)
• about 15 minutes before serving, arrange the dough rectangles (still frozen, if you wish) on a baking sheet
• paint the tops (not the sides) with egg glaze
• after half a minute or so, paint with a second coat
• make decorative knife cuts or cross-hatchings in the surface
• immediately bake in middle of oven for 12 - 15 minutes, until the pastries have puffed up and browned, and the sides have crisped
• may be baked somewhat ahead of time and left in truned-off oven, door ajar (will be less
• flakey and buttery, though)

To serve:

• while still hot, split pastries in half horizontally
• arrange 3 or 4 hot & buttery asparagus on each bottom half, their tips sticking out one of the ends
• spoon a bit of the lemon butter sauce over the asparagus
• cover loosely with with the top pastries
• serve at once!
• Instructions for the lemon butter sauce:
• takes 3 -4 minutes to make
• in a small saucepan, slowly boil the lemon juice, vermouth, and ¼ tablespoon of salt
• boil down to about 1 tablespoon
• a piece or two at a time, beat in the chilled pieces of butter, adding another piece or two just as the previous pieces just have melted, so that the sauce remains ivory colored, rather than looking like melted butter
• season to taste with salt and pepper. [Recipe by Julia Child]