20 Asparagus spears
900 ml (1½ pints) Chicken stock, or vegetable stock
225 g (8 oz) Green peas or chopped spinach
1 tsp Sugar
Salt and pepper
25 g (1 oz) Butter
25 g (1 oz) Plain Flour
150 ml (¼ pint) Milk
6 tbsp Double cream

Discard all but the top 6-8 cm (2½ - 3½ inches) of the asparagus spears as the lower part may make the soup bitter. Cut the remainder into 2.5 cm (1 inch) lengths. Reserve a few 1 cm (½ inch) tips for garnishing and cook these separately for 10 minutes in a little boiling water.

Bring the stock to the boil, put in the asparagus, the peas or chopped spinach, the sugar and seasoning and boil until the vegetables are tender.

Purée the vegetables and stock in a food processor or blender or push through a sieve.

Melt the butter in a saucepan, stir in the flour and add the asparagus purée. Bring to the boil, stirring in the milk.

To serve, stir in the cream and add a few asparagus tips to each bowl