Cream of asparagus is my favorite. while making the potato base puree some carrots, celery and onions in a blender and add to the water. Also add half of the asparagus before you boil the water. Once the soup is pretty much complete done cooking then add the rest of the asparagus and cook for just a little longer till asparagus is tender. That way you have some that flavors the base and gets mushy and disperses then you also have nice pieces of it in your soup and it does not break all up.