Asparagus and Leaks

     Thinking about yesterday's post regarding the theory of Volumetrics, I began to contemplate various vegetables with high water content in an attempt to cook and eat more low energy density foods.  One vegetable that immediately came to mind was asparagus.

     When harvested early it is particularly juicy and sweet with a sugar content of around 4% when first picked.  But alas, after only 24 hours the still growing shoot continues to consume it's sugars at a rapid rate, the fastest of all vegetables to do so, and it's flavor flattens out.  It sadly loses it's juiciness and becomes increasingly fibrous.  But not all is lost however.  Some of those sought after qualities can be partially restored by soaking the spears in a sugar water solution prior to cooking.  Click on the highlighted word for some recipes.
     According to Harold McGee, compiler of On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen,  "Asparagus is the main stalk of a plant in the lily family, Asparagus officinalis, a native of Eurasia that was a delicacy in Greek and Roman times."   Looking carefully you will notice that the stalk grows small projections rather than leaves that are called bracts.  And at the tip of the immature stalks are phylloclades, which are clusters of tiny tender bracts that are prized for their sweetness.
     But there is also a downside as well to enjoying this harbinger of Spring.  There is one unusual side effect from eating asparagus that can offend the olfactory nerve.  For when digested the body metabolizes a sulfur-containing substance, asparagusic acid, which closely resembles the essence of skunk spray.  And as many can attest, the aroma of methanethiol as it exits our body through the urine gives off a strong and unpleasant smell.  Marcel Proust in 1913 referred to it in one of his writings as the "aromatic perfume of asparagus." 
     Make sure you empty your chamber pot promptly in the morning after enjoying this low energy density, juicy and smelly vegetable!