Garlic and Parmesan Roasted Asparagus is simple and delicious. It is a quick side dish that pairs with any savory meal.
Garlic Roasted Asparagus
In the world of side dishes, asparagus is at the top for me. It is low in calories, low in fat and high in all sorts of nutrients. Roasting asparagus is a great way to add this delicious veggie into your regular meal rotation. If you love asparagus like me, make sure to try asparagus stuffed chicken. It is so perfectly simple, looks really impressive and has a flavor to match!
If you are looking to lighten this dish up, you can skip out on the parmesan cheese and it is still delicious. Speaking of cheese, here are a couple of options beyond parmesan:
- mozzarella
- provolone
- gruyere
My husband will even grate some pepper jack cheese when he is feeling fiesty!
Roasted Asparagus Ingredients
The ingredients in this recipe are also simple. Here are a few tips to get the most out of your ingredients:
- Asparagus – Thick stalk if you can find it, you may need to adjust your cooking time with this addition though.
- Parmesan – I always go for freshly grated when I have the time, the pre-shaved version will work but I think the flavor is so much better when I do it myself.
- Garlic – Finely minced, if you want to get extra fancy you can pre-roast the garlic.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil – You can go regular EVOO or pick up the flavored version.
- Salt – I prefer a coarser salt with this recipe, so I usually opt for sea salt, but kosher will work as well.
- Freshly ground black pepper
The best part is, you don’t even need to mess up any extra dishes. You can mix this whole thing up in a lined baking dish. No bowls, no spoons. Just your ingredients and your hands. You can serve it right on the baking dish too, or transfer it to a nice serving tray if you are looking for something a bit fancier.
How do You Roast Asparagus?
This may come as a shock to some, but I prefer the texture and flavor of a skinny asparagus stalk. It seems that ends are less “woody” and grainy and the crispiness just can’t be matched with a big, thick asparagus spear. However, if you are using thick asparagus, you may want to increase the amounts of the other ingredients just to make sure they are fully covered with all of the garlic and parmesan deliciousness.
When you are ready to roast, place your asparagus on your foil-lined pan. Add the other ingredients and then roughly toss them with together with your hands making sure to coat all of the stalks as evenly as possible so they don’t stick to the bottom of the pan. Once you have everything coated, lay each stalk down evenly. Sprinkle the top with parmesan cheese and pop in the oven for a whopping eight minutes. My oven has a “roast” setting, but if yours does not, just set it to bake ar 425°F.
Serve immediately (these cool down pretty quickly and you want to serve them hot).
INGREDIENTS
- 1/2 pound fresh asparagus
- 1 tablespoon olive oil, I prefer EVOO
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 3 cloves minced garlic
- 3 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat oven to 425°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and set aside.
- Rinse the asparagus and trim off woody end pieces if necessary.
- Spread out in a thin layer on top of the prepared cookie sheet.
- Drizzle the asparagus in olive oil, and then add salt, pepper, and garlic. Using tongs (or your hands) toss the asparagus to evenly coat and, then lay out into an even layer again.
- Evenly sprinkle with parmesan.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 8 minutes. Remove from oven and serve immediately on a pretty platter or in a bowl.
