Pencil-Thin Asparagus

I love asparagus, especially pencil thin asparagus.  Because they're so thin, they can be a little difficult to roast, but if you do so quickly at a very high temperature, you'll be very pleased with the results.  

Items used to make this recipe:

(affiliate links)

• cheese plane https://amzn.to/34tusgJ

• REALLY good olive oil https://amzn.to/3HlMf8d

• REALLY good balsamic vinegar https://amzn.to/3NvEsbW

• half sheet pan https://amzn.to/3T1OzpS

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Skinny Asparagus

Makes 4 servings

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 pound skinny asparagus, ends trimmed (about the same width as a pencil)

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• drizzle of excellent quality balsamic vinegar

• parmesan shavings

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 500F.

2. Place prepared asparagus on a half sheet pan.

3. Drizzle asparagus with olive oil, salt, and pepper; toss to coat well.

4. Arrange asparagus evenly in pan (it's ok if they overlap one another).

5. Roast uncovered for 10-12 minutes until the asparagus begin to shrivel and caramelize on the edges.

6. Arrange on serving platter and finish with a drizzle of balsamic and sprinkle with shaved parmesan.

Roasted Asparagus, and a nest of BABIES!!!

Oven-roasted asparagus is something I look forward to each spring.  I usually put them on a sheet pan, glug on a good bit of olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper before tossing into a very hot oven (400-450F) for 10-20 minutes until they're soft and beginning to caramelized.  Wanting to cut back on the calories this time, I lightly spritzed them with olive oil spray instead - they turned out just as delicious.  Can't wait to make them again.

Now get a load of this photo I took yesterday:

Hmmm.... I'd never seen Misty smashing her ears against the window screen before - I knew there had to be something interesting going on outside.

Yep, I'd say this is interesting - very interesting!  We've never had a nest right outside one of the windows before.  That little branch was in the way (uh, was!!), but it looked like the nest held two babies and an unhatched egg.

But look at the pic I got today - FOUR BABIES!  I snapped nearly 1000 pics and got sunburned waiting in the blazing sun for more than an hour, but this photo made it worth the effort.  Happy Spring everyone!!