Asparagus Tops a la Maintenon

Have all the asparagus of the same size, not too slender; break off the stalks at the beginning of the tender part; strip off the heads, and cut the tender part into inch lengths; put the heads aside to cook separately. Plunge the lengths into boiling salted water placed in an untinned copper pan; boil quickly, keeping them slightly hard, then wipe on a cloth, and put them into a thin sautoir with melted butter; season, heat rapidly while tossing, then remove. The asparagus can now be laid in a little veloute (No. 415) and chicken puree (No. 713). Serve the asparagus in a vegetable dish, surrounded with croutons of bread shaped like a cock's-comb, fried in butter, just when prepared to dish up.