Aniseed bearnaise sauce with steamed asparagus
Rich, buttery Bearnaise sauce gets one-upped by replacing tarragon with the stronger licorice flavour of aniseed. And what better way to fully appreciate this sauce than by pouring over crisp-tender verdant spears of freshly steamed asparagus?
YIELDS
4
Ingredients
Aniseed Bearnaise
- 1 shallot, minced
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) red wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons (30 ml) lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons (30 ml) aniseed, toasted and ground finely in a spice grinder, plus more for garnish
- Salt and pepper
- 4 large egg yolks
- 1 cup (240 ml) butter, melted and kept warm over lowest heat
- Warm water to thin the sauce, as needed
- Chopped chives, for garnish
Steamed Asparagus
- 2 bunches asparagus
- Salt, to season
Directions
Aniseed Bearnaise
- In a small saucepan over low heat, combine the shallot, vinegar, lemon juice, and aniseed. Season with salt and pepper and simmer until the liquid is almost evaporated eight to 10 minutes.
- Let cool and reserve.
- In a medium bowl set over a double boiler, whisk the egg yolks until pale and slightly thickened, four to five minutes.
- Add the reserved shallot mixture and whisk to combine. Cook while constantly whisking for another two minutes.
- Slowly ladle in the melted butter, whisking constantly until the sauce is emulsified.
- Use warm water to thin out the sauce, if needed.
- Keep just warm until needed. Monitor temperature closely and stir from time to time if not using the sauce immediately.
Steamed Asparagus
- In the bottom half of a steamer pan, bring water to a boil.
- Trim the dry ends from the asparagus. Peel the ends of each spear lightly with a vegetable peeler.
- Place the asparagus in the top half of the steamer pan. Cover and steam until crisp-tender, four to five minutes.
Serve
- Transfer the steamed and asparagus to serving plates. Season with salt.
- Remove the Aniseed Bearnaise from the heat and ladle over the Steamed Asparagus.
- Garnish with more aniseed and chives.
- Serve immediately. Enjoy!
