Ingredients

For the asparagus:
6 nice fat Yorkshire asparagus spears
smoked butter
For the pickled blackcurrant shoots:
100g blackcurrant leaf vinegar
100g blackcurrant leaf sugar
200g water
2 week old blackcurrant shoots (pick them at the beginning of the year)
For the pickled spruce jam:
100g pine sugar
175g spruce vinegar
20g pickled spruce shoots
6g agar
2g salt
10g pine oil

Method

Remove the ears from the asparagus, carefully scrape away the skin from beneath the spears to the bottom using a paring knife, set aside over ice.
To pickle the blackcurrant shoots, combine everything except the shoots and bring to the boil then chill immediately, vacuum pack the shoots in the liquid and reserve in a cool dark place until needed.
To make the spruce jam, place the sugar, salt and vinegar in a thermomix and set to 90°C on speed 4, once the liquid is at 90°C gradually disperse the agar into it and blend on full speed for 1 minute to hydrate it, then pour over and ice bath immediately.
Once the liquid has set, blend it with the spruce shoots until smooth and then add the oil. Place in a vacuum machine and repeat the process until no air bubbles remain in the jam. Keep in vacuum bags until needed.
Brush the asparagus with smoked butter and cook on a barbecue with your preferred fuel until charred and just tender.
Dress the cooked asparagus in pine jam, cover it with blackcurrant shoots, chervil & lemon balm.

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