Asparagus

At Hoover’s Farmers Market, asparagus is grown and picked fresh on our Lancaster County Farm. It’s a favorite spring vegetable and a perennial plant whose shoots offer a tasty way to get your antioxidants and vitamins. What’s the best way to cook asparagus? Asparagus makes a great side dish or a main vegetarian dish, so you’ll find April’s Fresh Pick delicious any way you choose:

1. Oven Roasted Asparagus (Baked Asparagus): Super easy! Trim the woody ends of your asparagus spears and discard.* Spread on a cookie sheet. Drizzle remaining spears with olive oil and toss to coat. Sprinkle the asparagus with garlic, salt, parmesan, or all three. Bake about 12 minutes or until crisp-tender.
2. Grilled Asparagus: Best way to celebrate Hoover’s April Fresh Pick! Start the same way you prepare oven-roasted asparagus, just use a hot grill instead of your oven. You can place the spears directly on the grill, in a pan, or wrapped in foil. Grill to desired tenderness. This will take less time than roasting asparagus in the oven, so watch closely.
3. Bacon-Wrapped Asparagus: Truly a favorite among best appetizers! Prepare as you did with the oven-roasted asparagus except skip the salt. Bacon will have that role. Once spears are coated, gently wrap single strips of bacon around bundles of 3 or 4 asparagus spears. The bacon “tie” should slightly spiral down the bundle, so your bacon strips aren’t too thick. Oven bake at 400 degrees for about 25 minutes or to desired crispness, or grill over medium heat for about 12 minutes, or desired crispness.

*Save yourself extra dishes when you coat the asparagus spears with olive oil. Just gently toss and coat using the pan or over the aluminum foil. Enjoy, and we’ll welcome you back for more freshly picked spears!