Asparagus

It’s springtime again and asparagus is making its debut on the vegetable scene once more. This densely nutritious food is chalk full of folic acid, potassium, fiber, thiamin, vitamin B6 and vitamins A and C. What’s more, asparagus has not cholesterol, no fat and low sodium.

This plant is a member of the Lily family and its spears grown upwards from a crown that is planted about a foot under the soil. Typically, the spears are not harvested until 3 years after a crown has been planted in order to ensure the growth of a strong root system.

When picking asparagus at your local market, keep in mind that the larger the diameter of the spears, the better the quality.

Around this time of year, we make asparagus our favorite side dish at the dinner table.

Roasting is a great way to prepare this dish and you can add a few other ingredients to the mix to make this the most quickly disappearing dish on the table.

We add a spoonful of Earth Balance natural spread and season the spears with salt and pepper before sticking them in the oven at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. Around halfway through the roast, we roll the spears over in the pan and make sure they get an even coating of spread and seasoning. It’s easy and delicious!