Spring Asparagus Pistou

"Chef in the Market" cooking demonstrations take place on the third Saturday of the month at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. at the Bellingham Farmers Market, May through September, and are always a good source of inspiration for novice and experienced cooks alike. Several of the area's finest chefs are recruited to demonstrate easy, affordable recipes that use produce and other ingredients from the Bellingham Farmers Market, and both the samples and the recipes are crowd-pleasers.

I was at the market this morning for about three hours, and among the 217 photos I took were a number at the 11 a.m. Chef in the Market. The featured chefs were Shawn and Megan from Ciao Thyme, where I've taken many cooking classes and enjoyed a number of wonderful meals.

The focus today was on local asparagus -- Shawn and Megan demonstrated a delicious Spring Asparagus Pistou (the French version of pesto) (note chaiselongue's comment below on the origin of the word), served on garlic crostini. Today's photo shows several of the main ingredients: fresh Whatcom County asparagus, chives and their flowers, and garlic (both regular and spring green garlic). Not shown are the other ingredients: fresh spinach, parsley, olive oil, Parmigiano Reggiano, hazelnuts (optional), preserved lemon or fresh lemon juice and zest, and salt and pepper to taste.

The recipe looked fairly easy when Shawn and Megan demonstrated it, but when I made it late this afternoon, I think I brought out nearly every large dish and pan I own! I don't have a full-size food processor (yet), just a "mini prep" one, so I used both that and my blender, which added to the myriad dishes I had to wash afterward.

Phil roasted fresh aparagus and chicken thighs on our large gas grill, and between us, we created a very nice supper, served with a delicious French rosé wine. That said, I don't think I'll be doing any cooking over the next day or two! Leftovers sound good to me.

P.S. Among the lovely things I admired today at the Bellingham Farmers Market were these flowers, which reminded me of the ones SeniorMoments blipped so beautifully earlier this week.