Creamed Asparagus and Eggs On Toast

I LOVE asparagus, and one of my favorite ways to eat it is with a cream sauce like mom used to make! My mother grew up as a live in maid and cook during her teen years, and she relied on her big sister (who was also a maid and cook), and a couple of recipe books to get her through. The recipe for the cream sauce came from one of the cook books she used as her "bible" when she was first starting out.  I used the two cookbooks I have of hers as a reference when I needed to know how to cook meat, and all of the other basics of cooking when I started cooking for a family . We didn't have the internet and the ability to Google anything we needed to know back then...so these cook books were a wealth of information for me. 
 

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And to think, the first addition of this book was printed in 1898!

Check out the listing of other variations on the sauce, and there are more on the next page!

I have a double boiler, but if you don't have one, not a problem. You can make this recipe with a regular sauce pan.  (I made a recipe and a half of the sauce so I'd be sure to have enough for the amount of asparagus I had.)
White Sauce
2 Tbs. butter
1 cup milk (you may substitute with half or cream)
2Tbs. flour (I only had wheat flour on hand, but I prefer white flour for this recipe)
1/4 tsp. salt
A few grains of pepper
You will need a bunch of asparagus, 2 or 3 hard boiled eggs, and bread for toast. I used whole grain bread, but I must admit, I love using a bread baked with garlic that I can get from my grocery store bakery. That extra bit of garlic flavor is yummy with the creamed asparagus!
Place the asparagus in a steamer to cook, or stand the asparagus in three inches of boiling water, cover and cook for 8 minutes or until the tips are tender, while preparing the white sauce.
White sauce: Melt butter in small flat-bottomed saucepan or double-boiler top, preferably with rounded edges, add flour mixed with seasonings , and stir until well blended. Use a wire whisk to keep sauce smooth and free of lumps. Pour on milk gradually, while stirring constantly. It is helpful to warm the milk a little in the microwave ahead of time to help to keep the sauce smooth. Bring to boiling point. Boil 2 minutes. Cook in double boiler or sauce pan for 15 mins. Stir well. If you don't have a double boiler, just turn your burner down to low and cook (stirring often) until it is thickened to desired consistency.

While the sauce is cooking in the double boiler, I take the time to cut up my cooked asparagus into bite sized pieces, and prepare my toast.

 I slice the eggs and lay them on the buttered toast. It would also work to cut up the eggs and add them to the sauce along with the cut cooked asparagus.

Put the cooked asparagus into the sauce and let it heat up a bit before spooning onto the prepared toast and eggs.