Hokkaido is famous for our delicious asparagus, and freshly-harvested asparagus is one of my favorite vegetables (it’s nothing like canned, frozen, or old asparagus!!). But I have a friend who sends me a big box of just-harvested asparagus every spring, and eating it all up before the flavor drops is always a challenge. This year I decided to use a lot of them in a pie. It turned out to be one of the easiest and yummiest pies I’ve ever tried.
I lined a pie plate with pie crust and blind-baked it for ten minutes at 200 C (400 F). While waiting for the crust to cool, I prepared the contents of the pie:
10-15 fresh asparagus spears cooked till tender, but not soft. (I steam them in my microwave)
1 block of firm “cotton” tofu (momen), or whatever kind of tofu you have.
1 fresh egg (you can try omitting this for a vegan version)
1/4 coarsely chopped onion, salt, lemon pepper, a handful of fresh dill (season it to your own taste)
Cut the asparagus spears into chunks to make it easier for the blender to do its work, then toss it along with half of the tofu and the rest of the ingredients into the blender. Turn on the blender, adding more tofu till the blender moves smoothly and the contents are well-pureed.
Pour the mixture into the pie shell, and bake in a pre-heated 180 C (350 F) degree oven for 40 minutes or till the pie is set. Let it cool to room temperature before slicing into wedges.
I topped each wedge with some cooked asparagus tips which I had marinated in minced fresh garlic and olive oil. It was fantastic!
