Asparagus and Mushrooms with Brown Butter

I ate at (another) fabulous restaurant in the Sacramento area last week, Hawks, located in Granite Bay. Every dish was creatively delicious. Here's my take on their side dish of asparagus. They don't add mushrooms, they add spring onions. Truth be told, the mushrooms were a chance byproduct of browning the butter in the same pan that I was browning mushrooms, and I liked the result so much that I kept them in the dish. 

Ingredients:

10 stalks asparagus
1 Tbs. butter
2 spring onions (or use green onions)
1/2 cup small mushrooms, I used baby shiitake, but any small mushroom will work
1 grind sea salt

Directions:

Bring a saucepan half full of water to a boil. Cut the tough ends off the asparagus, then cut them into 1/2 inch lengths, leaving the tips about 1 inch long. Toss the asparagus into the boiling water and let simmer for about 1 minute. Drain the asparagus. Cut the spring onions into 1/4 to 1/2 inch lengths. Heat a skillet over medium high heat. Add the butter, letting it froth and turn slightly brown. Next, add the spring onions, then the mushrooms. Cook for about 1 minute, until the mushrooms just get hot. Add the drained asparagus to the skillet, stirring until the asparagus is mixed with the other vegetables and is coated with the butter. Taste, then add a grind of salt, if needed.

Stealthy Cooking Tip: You won't always need to add salt. If you have salted butter, you may find that the asparagus tastes just fine without additional salt. With unsalted butter, you may prefer a grind (or two) of salt.