Nothing sings spring like asparagus.  Our markets are full of fresh, tender, bright green asparagus now.  This early in the season, when the asparagus is tender, I mostly just roast the asparagus in the oven and we eat it as a side or toss it in a salad.  A little later, around June, when the stalks become a little more mature, I make sautee’d dishes, like the Edamame Spaghetti with Asparagus that I had written about last June.  I also sometimes make a yummy asparagus pesto with olive oil, a couple of cloves of garlic and some pine nuts.

Fresh spring Asparagus

Before we get in to the recipe for roasted asparagus, I wanted to throw in an odd question.  How many of you have felt threatened by hummingbirds in your garden?   I hang out in the garden a lot during the weekend, either line-drying my laundry, or puttering around with my plants.  If I am anywhere close to the patch of the bright pink alstroemeria flowers, this little hummingbird with a red neck flies close to my face flutters around as if to threaten me for intruding into its territory.  I read somewhere that hummingbirds are the Aztec God of War and are actually very fierce creatures.  V simply does not believe me when I say I am being threatened by a hummingbird in our garden!   Thoughts, anyone?

Back to spring and asparagus, basil is yet another spring necessity I cannot live without!  We always have basil growing in the garden during spring and summer and sometimes it even survives the winter.  The basil smelled so lovely when I was out in the garden today that I decided to make a basil-infused olive oil to roast the asparagus with.

Roasted Asparagus with Basil-infused Olive Oil

Recipe for Roasted Asparagus with Basil-infused Olive Oil
[Printable Recipe]

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup packed basil leaves
• 1 cup good quality extra virgin olive oil
• 1 lb asparagus stalks, trimmed
• Salt and ground black pepper to taste