Spargel mit Sauce Hollandaise

Name: Spargel mit Sauce Hollandaise
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: German
Ingredients: Asparagus; Quark; Fat-free Greek yoghurt; Egg yolk; Olive oil; Lemon juice; Dijon mustard; Salt; Black pepper

Spargel mit Sauce Hollandaise, plated as one serving.

164 kcal a serving, against 548 for the traditional version. That is 384 kcal off, or 70%, with 13.3g of protein. Serves 4. 45 minutes.

What the traditional version is

White asparagus spears, peeled and simmered until just tender, then plated under a tidal wave of warm, glossy Hollandaise made with obscene amounts of butter and egg yolk, often served with new potatoes. The sauce is mostly butter held together by yolk and a dash of lemon juice. It's creamy, sharp, and so rich you feel it in your knees.

What changed, and what each change costs

250g of butter replaced with 120g quark, 60g fat-free Greek yoghurt and 20g olive oil

The butter has to go. Even a tablespoon blows the numbers straight out the window. Quark and yoghurt thicken nicely and bring some tang, and a drizzle of olive oil gives the body you need without flooding the plate.

What it costs you. Without the butter, you lose all the velvet texture and that lingering mouthfeel. It's not as lush or indulgent. Anyone who says differently has never eaten a good Hollandaise.

Egg yolks cut from 60g down to 40g, whisked with 25g water to recover some emulsion

Yolk is there for the emulsion and the colour, but it's also pure fat. I cut a yolk or so but keep enough to give a bit of shine, then use hot water to bulk out the sauce and stop it going to scrambled eggs.

What it costs you. The sauce is thinner and less stable. If you make it ahead, it splits. But you're eating right away so it doesn't really matter.

Salt held steady, lemon juice up a bit, mustard added

The lemon and mustard are there to wallop your taste buds and distract from what's missing.

What it costs you. If the sauce is a bit loud, that's deliberate. It's there to shout over the missing butter.

What goes in it

The ingredients, without the quantities. The weights are what the figures below are computed from, and they are in the book.

Asparagus
Quark
Fat-free Greek yoghurt
Egg yolk
Olive oil
Lemon juice
Dijon mustard
Salt
Black pepper

How it starts

Start by peeling the asparagus all the way from tip to base, as white spears are fibrous and unforgiving.
Bring a big pan of salted water to a simmer and cook the spears for 8-10 minutes until just tender.
While that's going, set up your sauce.

The rest of the method, and every weight, is in Authentic-ish German.

The numbers

Per serving	Traditional	Lightened
Calories	548	164
Protein	8.4g	13.3g
Fat	55g	8.2g
Saturated fat	33.1g	1.8g
Carbohydrate	10.7g	13g
Protein per 100 kcal	1.5g	8.1g

Every figure is computed from the recipe's own weighed ingredient list against public food composition databases. The appendix in Authentic-ish German prints the exact database row used for each ingredient, so any number here can be checked. How every number is computed sets out the method.

Allergens. eggs, milk, mustard.

The method is in the book

No two ways about it, the original is leagues ahead. Butter and yolk are magic together and quark can only fake so much. But this version means you can put away a plate of asparagus and sauce and not instantly need a nap. The sauce is sharp, light and has a nice kick from the mustard, and it does the job on fresh white spears. It's not a true Hollandaise, it's a work-around, but that's the whole point.

The quantities and the method for this dish are in Authentic-ish German, along with 54 more. Buy the paperback