Asparagus with Hollandaise Sauce

 

Asparagus with Hollandaise Sauce always says spring to me, but hollandaise Sauce can also be something that strikes fear in the hearts of many cooks.  I’ve done it the old fashioned way with a whisk and had it turn out… and had it not turn out, but the blender method always seems to work.  There are a lot of recipes out there with quite wide variances is the main ingredients – egg yolks (2 to 4), butter (1/2 to 3/4 cup), lemon juice (1 tsp. to 3 Tbsps.), so I am giving you the ratios I like best, which are pretty middle of the the road, but you can easily adjust it a bit to your tastes.  It is the method that is important – pouring the butter into the blender in a slow steady stream incorporates it perfectly.  Make it just before you are going to serve it.  It only takes about five minutes to put together.  The asparagus is steamed just until crisp-tender and then topped with the hollandaise sauce.  When putting together this recipe, I looked at several hollandaise Sauce recipes.  While this is not exactly any of these, it is quite close to all of them:  Blender Hollandaise from The Food Network, Classic Hollandaise Sauce from Food and Wine, and Julia Child’s Easy Blender Hollandaise Sauce from The Shiksa in the Kitchen.

Please note that hollandaise sauce has eggs in it that are not well cooked, so only eat it if you are prepared to take that risk. 

Hollandaise Sauce

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Ingredients

• 3 egg yolks
• 1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Place egg yolks and lemon juice in the blender and blend for a few seconds to combine.
2. Melt butter - I bring mine to a boil.
3. Open the hole in the top of the blender, turn the blender on low and pour the butter in, in a slow steady stream.
4. Add salt and pepper and blend until well combined.