Roasted Asparagus

Grocery shopping in DC is stressful. Living in California, I used to love the peacefulness of grocery shopping, the trivial yet enjoyable nature of picking out food for the week. Here in DC, grocery shopping is quite the ordeal.

First, I walk about fifteen minutes to get to a grocery store. If I remember to go shopping before Sunday, there might be decent looking produce at Safeway, Harris Teeter, or Trader Joe's. At Trader Joe's, I have to prepare myself for the check-out line that wraps around to the entrance of the store and is at least twenty minutes long. And if I make the crucial mistake of shopping in the late afternoon on a Sunday, then I am definitely heading to Whole Paycheck Foods for produce. After filling my reusable bags with produce, dairy, and meat for the week, I begin to make my trek back home.

Back in California, grocery shopping was a chance for discovery--for uncovering new ingredients to add in to my repertoire. Here in DC, I just want to get into the grocery store and leave as soon as possible. I started following strict shopping lists so that I could get in and out as quickly as possible. Usually, I am pretty good about making a list and sticking to it. 

This past weekend though, I got distracted by some asparagus. It just looked so good, and I realized that I had not eaten asparagus in so long (probably because it's a spring vegetable, and it's currently only the beginning of March...). I decided to buy the asparagus, even though it wasn't on my list, and I wasn't quite sure how I was going to cook it. My family typically cooks asparagus out on the BBQ but due to the lack of warm weather (and a real BBQ grill) here in DC, I realized that wasn't going to be an option.  I decided to stick with a traditional roasted asparagus recipe--it was delicious, straightforward, and quick. 

Hope this inspires you to pick up some asparagus next time you are at the market--it's just the start of spring, so there will be lots of beautiful asparagus at the market over the next few months!

Roasted Asparagus

1 lb of asparagus

2 tablespoons olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 

Cut off the tough part of the asparagus (last two inches or so).

Place the asparagus on a sheet pan. Toss the asparagus with olive oil, and then sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Roast in the oven for 25 minutes. The asparagus should be tender yet still crisp.