A quick and easy side dish from the book Everyday Food: Great Food Fast, this really would work with almost any fresh vegetable, but I really liked the parmesan flavor with asparagus.

1 1/2 pounds asparagus, trimmed
1 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 450F

In a shallow baking dish or rimmed baking sheet, toss trimmed asparagus in olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Top with shredded Parmesan cheese.

Bake 10-15 minutes or until asparagus is tender (will look bright green).

From the book Everyday Food: Great Food Fast, here is a quick dish to make with seasonal asparagus and fresh dill. If you can boil water and cut vegetables, you can make this dish! If you don’t have fettuccine noodles, use another thick-stranded pasta such as linguini.

1/4 cup pine nuts
3/4 lb fettuccine
2 bunches asparagus, trimmed
4 oz creamy goat cheese, broken into pieces
2 tbsp grainy mustard
2 tbsp snipped fresh dill leaves

Halve asparagus length-wise and cut cross-wise into third. In a small skillet over medium heat, toast pine nuts, stirring often, until golden, about 3 minutes. Set aside.

In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the fettuccine until al dente (8-10 minutes), according to package directions. Add asparagus during the last 5 minutes of cooking. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water and drain the rest.

Return pasta, asparagus, and reserved pasta water to pot. Toss with the goat cheese, mustard, dill, and toasted pine nuts. Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

Shown below with Cucumber Onion Salad and home-grown tomatoes: