Asparagus (Asparagus officinalis) is one of those things that people either absolutely love or absolutely hate. I stand firmly in the love column.

I bet that most people who say they hate asparagus have only tasted the soggy spears that plop out of cans. Canned asparagus cannot even compare to fresh, especially if it is home- or locally grown.

First, a little history

Asparagus has been around for a long time. We are talking old enough to be in an Egyptian painting from 3000 BC old. It is native to Europe, northern Africa and western Asia and can be found in many different cuisines.

It was favored by many ancient civilizations, such as the Romans and Greeks. It has been held in high esteem throughout Europe for centuries, where they prefer theirs white (they pile up soil around it to keep it from photosynthesizing and turning green).

It didn’t make the leap across the Atlantic to the United States until about 1850.

Read the rest at the Charleston Gazette-Mail.

Full text available 04.06.14.