Asparagus: A Love Affair (Part One)

Why have I not noticed up until now how lovely asparagus is as a vegetable? A tray of gorgeous asparagus caught my eye in the grocery store yesterday, and I decided to search for a recipe that would suit my impulse purchase. I settled on these gorgeous roasted mushroom and asparagus tarts using puff pastry sheets from Bon Appetit!

My modifications:

• I cut off the asparagus spears, and put the stalks away in the fridge to use for soup later on (most likely tonight).
• I could not find creme fraiche anywhere, so I substituted half sour cream and half plain, non-flavoured yoghurt. 
• I used shiitake mushrooms, and roasted them for ten minutes in hot butter. The smell and nutty, buttery, meaty taste that came off of these was incredible!
• Puff pastry sheets are super easy to use! I thawed them for 40 minutes on my countertop, and then they were so easy to roll out and cut for the tarts.
• This recipe is very versatile and open to changes. Besides the veggies and cream, I added in grated Gruyere cheese, lemon zest, fresh thyme (chopped very finely), salt and pepper. Simple, but elegant and delicious!

Stay tuned for Part Two: Asparagus Soup!

Recipe Link: http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/asparagus-and-mushroom-tarts