And now, for a limited time…asparagus is heeeeere!

Soba noodles with asparagus, grated egg, and sesame-miso dressing

Would you like your egg this way?

Or this way?

"It's time to eat asparagus three times a day! Then, when the season is over, we should lust for it for ten more months," says Farmer Lee Jones, owner of The Chef's Garden and Farmer Jones Farm. 

I wrote a book — a 630-page tome, to be exact — with Farmer Lee about vegetables, and I think of his words every spring. Yes, we can buy asparagus almost year-round. But when asparagus is as fresh as can be from a local farm, it's almost always much sweeter and juicier than the stuff I can get from the supermarket. 

The window when asparagus is tasty enough for us to enjoy is woefully short. Not only does it begin to lose its sweetness within days of being harvested, but in the field, a spear can go from not-quite-ready to harvest to tough and woody within hours. 

That's because asparagus — the plant — has a larger mission. 

In the plant's "mind," the end of the journey isn't to produce a sweet, tender spear for our plates. No, no. Asparagus is simply a stem. When it grows tall enough, the tops of asparagus unfurl into ferny leaves that capture the energy of the sun to recharge the roots and ultimately help asparagus reproduce.

Asparagus are perennial plants that can live up to a whopping 20 years. (At the Chef's Garden, they like to say that asparagus isn't just a crop. It's a  relationship.) To keep the plants producing year after year, growers need to resist harvesting every spear and allow some of them to go through their complete life cycle. 

Someday, I hope to have an asparagus patch of my own. For now, I eagerly await finding bunches at the farmers market. When I can, I like to grab a bunch or two of purple asparagus because it's a little milder and less "green" tasting than the green varieties. And let's be honest: It's also so darn gorgeous. (Warning: Purple asparagus will turn green unless you eat them raw or very lightly cooked.) 

For this week's asparagus recipe (and yes, I plan for there to be at least one more this season!), I wanted to highlight the earthier side of the vegetable by pairing it with soba noodles, which are made with buckwheat. 

I toss the asparagus with a toasty sesame dressing enriched with miso. I also add furikake — a dry mixture popular in Japanese food that usually contains toasted sesame seeds and seaweed, as well as other flavorful ingredients, like shavings of tart ume plum or katsuobushi (dried smoked fish). I've realized my health food store sells furikake from the brand, Eden, and calls it "Eden Shake." 

If you can't find furikake, substitute toasted sesame seeds and crumbled toasted seaweed snacks. 

For the hard-boiled egg, you have a choice: Grate the egg into feathery shavings or halve it to nestle it in the bowl. The eating experience changes depending on what you do, with the grated egg melting into the salad, once tossed, to make the whole thing seem creamier. With the halved egg, you enjoy a more pure taste of the soba and dressing and take bites of the egg as you wish.  

Soba Noodles with Asparagus, Grated Egg and Sesame-Miso Dressing

I enjoy recipes that make use of one pot of boiling water, so that’s what this does. BUT, if you’d like this to come together even faster, you can use two pots: One for the eggs and one for the noodles and asparagus. 

Serves 3 to 4

Time: 30 minutes

1 bunch asparagus (about 1 pound)

4 large eggs

One package (8 to 10 ounces) soba noodles

1 tablespoon white miso

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

1 teaspoon honey

1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil

1 tablespoon neutral oil, such as canola or grapeseed

2 tablespoons furikake or 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds and 1 tablespoon crumbled toasted seaweed snacks, plus more for sprinkling

Sliced chive or scallion (optional)

Salt

Start a pot of water and prep the asparagus

Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil over high heat. 

Snap off the woody ends of the asparagus. (They will naturally break off at the bottom when you bend them.)

Cut the asparagus into 2-inch lengths. 

Cook the eggs, noodles, and asparagus

When the water boils, reduce the heat to a simmer. Carefully lower the eggs into the water and cook for 10 minutes for hard-cooked eggs that are good for grating or 8 minutes for eggs with a jammy yolk (set a timer either way). 

Using a slotted spoon, transfer the eggs to a bowl, and fill the bowl with cool water and a couple of ice cubes to cool the eggs down. 

Season the water with salt. Add the noodles to the water and cook until just tender, about 4 minutes or according to the package instructions. 

Add the asparagus to the noodles during the last minute of cooking. 

Drain the noodles and asparagus and rinse until cold water to cool down to warm. 

Meanwhile, make the dressing

As everything cooks, whisk together the miso, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and honey in a large bowl, then whisk in the toasted sesame oil and neutral oil. 

Put it all together

Shake as much excess water out of the noodles and asparagus as possible. (You might even want to pat them dry a bit with a clean towel.) Add the noodles and asparagus to the dressing and toss until nicely coated. Add the 2 tablespoons furikake and some sliced chives or scallions, if desired, and toss again. 

Taste and season the noodles with salt, if desired. 

Transfer the noodle salad to bowls. 

Peel the hard-boiled eggs. You can either halve them and nestle them in the bowls or coarsely grate the eggs over the noodles. Sprinkle with a bit more furikake and serve. 

The short version

• Bring a pot of water to a boil and cut the asparagus into 2-inch lengths. 

• Hard-boil the eggs (8 mins for jammy yolks, 10 mins for hard-cooked), then use the same water to cook the soba noodles. Add the asparagus during the last minute of cooking, then drain and cool under cold water. 

• In a large bowl, whisk together the miso, soy sauce, rice vinegar, honey, sesame oil and neutral oil. 

• Shake the noodles and asparagus dry, then add to the dressing. Add the furikake and season with salt, if desired. Serve the noodles with the eggs, either grating the eggs on top or halving to nestle in the bowls. 

Fun for kids

• Snap off the ends of asparagus.

• Whisk together the dressing.

• Toss the noodles with the dressing and furikake.

• Peel the eggs. 

• Grate or cut the eggs. 

Swaps

• Instead of asparagus, try with blanched snap peas or green beans, cut in half. (You’ll have to cook the green beans for about 4 minutes.)

• Instead of soba, try with udon. 

• Instead of rice vinegar, use white wine, apple cider, or Champagne vinegar. 

• Instead of honey, use brown sugar or maple syrup. 

• Instead of sesame oil, use another tablespoon of the neutral oil. (You’ll lose some of the toasty sesame flavor though.)

• Instead of eggs, add some fried tofu. (See my preferred cooking method here.)

Bonus points

• If you want more protein, you can add in some fried tofu or some quickly cooked frozen peas. 

• For more veggies, add in some raw or quickly-wilted greens. 

• Grated carrots would also be at home in this dish.