Asparagus with Sauce Gribiche

One of my favorite food bloggers, Molly of Orangette, recently announced that she will be taking time off from her site, which was definitely sad news, as her site had the trifecta of good writing, beautiful photos, and delicious recipes. Given that it's still asparagus season around here, I decided to make some sauce gribiche in Orangette's honor and serve it over some cooked asparagus. (Sauce gribiche was one of the last things Molly blogged about before going on hiatus.) Molly wrote about two different types of sauce gribiche, and I decided to try out the one that sounded less like mayonnaise, as I have not quite advanced to the point where I am comfortable making my own mayo from scratch.

Hopefully the picture above indicates that this other sauce gribiche was rather a success. Why wouldn't it be? After all, it's pretty hard to resist a sauce made from hard-boiled eggs, tiny cornichons (so much tastier than their big brothers pickles), shallots, lots of herbs, and fruity olive oil. I followed Molly's adaptation of the Chez Panisse recipe pretty closely, but I did substitute the tarragon I planted on our porch for chervil, which I never seem to be able to find at the local Whole Foods.

Sauce Gribiche
Adapted from Orangette
(who adapted it from the Chez Panisse Café Cookbook )

1 large egg
1 medium shallot, finely chopped
2 tablespoons lemon juice, or to taste
2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
2 tablespoons finely chopped chervil (tarragon seemed to work well too)
2 tablespoons thinly sliced chives
Finely grated zest of ½ lemon
1 tablespoon capers, rinsed and finely chopped
3 cornichons, finely chopped
¾ cup olive oil
Salt, to taste

1. Put the egg in a small saucepan and cover with cold water. Place the pan over medium-high heat, and bring to a boil. As soon as it boils, remove the pan from the heat, cover it, and set a timer for 10 minutes. When the timer goes off, drain away the hot water and rinse the egg under cold water until it is thoroughly cool.

2. Meanwhile, combine the shallot and the lemon juice in a small bowl. Set aside to macerate while you prepare the rest of the sauce.

3. Combine the parsley, chervil or tarragon, chives, lemon zest, capers, cornichons, and olive oil in a small bowl. Whisk well. Peel the egg, and then finely chop the yolk and dice the white. Add the egg to the bowl. Add the lemon juice, shallots, and a good pinch of salt, and whisk well. Taste, and adjust with more lemon juice and salt, if needed.

4. Serve over cooked asparagus. Should also be delicious over boiled potatoes.