Roasted Cheesy Garlic Asparagus

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Beautiful thin spring asparagus is in-season! Asparagus is low in calories and a great source of nutrients, including fiber, folate, and vitamins A, C, and K.  However, not everyone is a fan of these green spears.  I wasn’t!  I had only had thick woody asparagus, which had a distinct, strong, somewhat bitter taste and was over-cooked. No, thank you. Hard pass! My opinion quickly changed when I was introduced to fresh asparagus, roasted until just tender.  It has a much more pleasing texture and milder taste. If you are feeding non-believers, like I was, this recipe is sure to make them converts!  This asparagus is roasted with garlic and topped with melted mozzarella cheese making it a perfect veggie side dish for any dinner. There are only four ingredients (plus salt & pepper), it’s ready in 15 minutes, and the clean-up is easy breezy. You can’t make it any easier.  Plus, it’s low-carb and keto-friendly!

Start with about a half-pound of fresh asparagus, about a half package. (This is a straightforward recipe to double if you want to use a full pound.)  I prefer the thin asparagus spears, but that’s a personal choice.   To prep the asparagus, you need to get rid of the woody portion of the stalk.  There are two ways to know where to cut. You can eyeball it and cut where the stalks turn from white into green. Or you can hold the asparagus spear firmly on each end. Gently bend the asparagus so that it bows out away from you. Keep bending until the asparagus snaps. It’s a natural separation.  Although you can snap each spear, I do just one and then line up the rest of the bunch on a cutting board and uniformly slice them the same length.

Clean-up is made easy by using a rimmed baking sheet/pan lined with aluminum foil and lightly coated with non-stick spray.  Parchment paper will work too — as it’s non-stick, no need to spray it. The trimmed asparagus goes on the prepped pan.

Using a grater or zester, grate four cloves of garlic.  I like grating them directly into a glass measuring cup. Add in the olive oil, and salt & pepper and thoroughly combined. Drizzle the mixture on top of the asparagus.  Make sure that each spear is coated.  Place the pan in a pre-heated oven and roast for 8-10 minutes, depending on the thickness of the stalks.  Remove from the oven just as they are beginning to get tender.

The oven setting is then changed to broil – HIGH. Sprinkle the asparagus with the shredded mozzarella cheese. Place under the broiler for just a minute until the cheese melts and begins to brown.  Do NOT walk away from the broiler!  The cheese melts almost immediately and will burn quickly. Remove from the broiler and transfer to a serving plate. 

Zhoosh it up by adding ½ teaspoon of your favorite fresh or dried herbs (rosemary, oregano, thyme, chives). ENJOY!

Try these delicious roasted veggies…

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