Archibald
Do you have any vegetables that you never cook because you just have no idea what to do with them? I think we do that more than we realize. If we didn’t grow up eating it or haven’t ever seen anyone cook it, we just walk on by without even noticing. I used to have two vegetables like that but now I’m down to only one because thanks to this recipe, asparagus is no longer just one of my favorite Veggie Tales characters, it is also something mouth wateringly delicious (Sorry Archibald!).
Now some of you, who have been eating asparagus all of your life, may be surprised to find it was pretty much a foreign obstacle to me and my entire family (including grandparents) until recently. Several weeks back while I was in Ecuador I posted some photos of new-to-me foods on my Facebook page and someone commented that they were surprised I didn’t have a more “sophisticated palate”. That made me giggle to read because at no point in my life have I ever set out to have a sophisticated palate!
Many of you know my story by now: I’m a mama with a home ec degree who likes to feed people and enjoys cooking. I’m not a foodie or a chef – I’m a mama and a cook. My food isn’t about venturing to new places for exotic food experiences, it’s about bringing your family home to gather around the dishes from our heritage.
Having said that, though, I don’t object to adding to that heritage from time to time.
Last November, I was talking to my friend Jyl about our menu plans for Thanksgiving dinner and I asked her what her most requested dish was. She told me it was asparagus. I responded with “Asparagus? But what do you DO with it?”
“Oh I roast it!”
I decided that if it was that big of a deal on her family dinner table it had to be something good. I bought some that week and figured I’d make it for supper one night but it got to getting the best of me as I went to bed and I spent most of the night trying to imagine what it could possibly taste like. The next morning I was standing over a pan of freshly roasted asparagus at around 4:45 AM – and it sure was good! I ate the entire thing. Needless to say, I wasn’t hungry by the time the kids got up for breakfast!
We ended up having this for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and several dinners in betwixt and since then. It’s terribly easy to make and just delicious. Even though there is no butter involved, this asparagus ends up tasting buttery, with flavors of the garden and just the right touch of salt.
I’m glad I tried it and I’m sure it will be a staple in the Jordan family for generations to come.
Is there a vegetable you’ve never tried? If so, why not? No judging here! If you think something looks or sounds weird that’s reason enough for me! Tell me about it in the comments below – and be sure and try this wonderful side dish first chance you get!
Oooh! Let me show you how easy this is to make!
You’ll need: Kosher Salt, Olive Oil, and Asparagus.
Kosher salt really is amazing and it doesn’t cost much at all so I have gotten to where I keep it in hand here lately. Olive Oil is pretty expensive, so I go for generic whenever I can get it and have no qualms whatsoever about substituting vegetable oil in a pinch.
Generic olive oil has the same amount of self esteem as name brand olive oil as long as you don’t talk ugly about it where it can hear you.
Okay, so here is what you do. This is a piece of asparagus and we want to snap the end off. We’ll actually end up snapping the bottom two to three inches off but there is a part where it will snap really easy so we gotta find that by just bending it 2-3 inches from the end and seeing if it snaps easy. If it doesn’t, go up another inch and it should.
Like this.
Please note that this is a two handed operation here, but I’m trying to be all ninja mama so I can get a photo of it broken for you.
After you get all of the ends snapped off, spread them out on a rimmed baking sheet (or a jelly roll pan).
Drizzle them with olive oil and sprinkle them with kosher salt.
Bake this at 425 for about twenty minutes, stirring it once in the middle, until it is just lightly browned.
And that’s all there is to it – Eat up!
- 1 bunch asparagus
- 1-2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 1-2 teaspoons kosher salt
- Preheat oven to 425.
- Wash Asparagus and break off bottom two inches or so of each stalk.
- Arrange on rimmed baking sheet.
- Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with kosher salt.
- Place in oven for about 20 minutes, stirring once, until lightly browned on the edges.
Are there any vegetables that you have never tried?
I’d love to hear which ones in the comments below!
I have one vegetable left (that I know of) that I’ve never tried and that is artichokes. No idea what to do with those things but anytime someone tells me how to eat them it just seems like an awful lot of effort for very little return. If you have a fabulous way to prepare artichokes let me know in the comments and I just might give it a try one of these days!
“Contentment is not the fulfillment of what you want,
but the realization of how much you already have.”
~Anonymous
Submitted by Janet. Thank you, Janet!
Yummy, roasted artichokes!!
After rinsing and patting dry your artichoke, cut off about 1/4 of the top portion and the stem…..place on top of a piece of foil….insert garlic cloves(about 4) down inside some of the leaves(?)….drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt…..wrap in the foil and roast at 375 for 45 min to an hour…..eat the garlic cloves along with the yummy parts of the artichoke(each leaf, which you dip in butter), and then the best part, the heart….I’m sure you already know about gently scraping off the hairy part of the heart before you eat it….don’t want to eat those hairy things….look it up on line if you’re not aware…..I know you will enjoy an artichoke prepared this way….we each eat our own artichoke along with a salad….a yummy meal!!!
Okay Meredith, I’m gonna give this a go! Thank you for the detailed instructions, it’s exactly what I needed! Now I just need someone to tell me how I can learn to like avocados…
I see eggplants in the grocery store but don’t know how to cook them. Do you have a recipe? I have eaten some that another person made. They told me how to make a casserole which seemed really easy; it was baked in the oven with cheese on top and was really good but I forgot the recipe. Do you have this one like this? Eggplants are such a beautiful vegetable.
Yes, I do have a recipe!! Here is a link: https://www.southernplate.com/2009/09/if-you-give-a-belle-an-eggplant.html
Try sprinkling a little steak seasoning pepper (Montreal is an expensive one, but there are lots out there) on the asparagus instead of the salt. OUT OF THIS WORLD!!
I bet that is good!!
I’ll make this tomorrow. I bought some green asparagus AND purple asparagus at Meijer last night. 🙂
How was the purple asparagus? I haven’t tried it.
Like you, growing up in the. It gains of Western NC, I didn’t eat asparagus growing up! I cook it just like your recipe. Jt I also sprinkle sesame seeds on it! Yummy.,
We cook asparagus on the grill. Add some lemon and pepper or a squeeze of fresh lemon or lime.