In an earlier post, I alluded to a couple of asparagus recipes I make over and over again. Here's the easiest, and quickest; in fact, it's so simple I hesitate to call it a "recipe," but it does involve a couple of ingredients, and turning on your oven, so I guess it counts. Grab a bunch of fresh asparagus from your market and make this dish tonight.

Easiest Roast Asparagus

Ingredients

• 1 bunch of asparagus
• Kosher salt
• Olive oil
• Half a lemon

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Wash asparagus and snap off the tough ends (the stalks should break naturally at a certain point).

2. Lay the spears on a baking sheet in a single row. Drizzle some olive oil over the aspargus and toss to coat (go ahead and use your hands). Make sure none of the spears overlap, then sprinkle with salt.

3. Roast for about 10 minutes (depending on the size of your stalks). When a fork easily pierces the stalks, it's done. I like my asparagus slightly caramelized to really bring out the flavors, though it gets a little soft and loses some of its "snap."

4. Remove from the oven and squeeze with fresh lemon juice. That's it!

You can also vary this recipe by grating some fresh Parmesan over the asparagus when it comes out of the oven, and then dressing with lemon juice. You can even add a sunny-side up or poached egg on top to make it a more substantial dish.