I learned to roast my asparagus from Nina Simonds, the expert on health giving Asian foods, and after trying it the first time, I’ve never turned back. I buy a full 1/2 pound and extract about four spears before roasting, to save for a stir-fry. Leftovers make a wonderful BLA (see below) or just a salad.

　　

Ingredients

1/2 pound asparagus

　　1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

　　1/2 teaspoon olive oil

　　Pinch of salt

　　

Sesame Vinaigrette

1 scant tablespoon soy sauce

　　2 teaspoons rice vinegar

　　1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

　　3/4 teaspoon sugar

　　

Step 1

Trim the tough ends off the asparagus. Lay the spears on a baking tray lined with aluminum foil or Silpat, and drizzle the sesame and olive oils over. Salt lightly. Roll the spears over to coat all sides. Put the pan in a preheated 475° oven, and roast the asparagus for 12 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare the vinaigrette, and when the asparagus is done, pour some of it over the spears.

　　

Second Round: BLA (Bacon, Lettuce, and Asparagus Sandwich)

Step 2

If you have leftover asparagus, try making what, according to the food writer David Nussbaum, the natives in Massachusetts—in the Connecticut River Valley, where asparagus is grown—call a BLA: a bacon, lettuce, and asparagus sandwich with mayonnaise. It’s delicious.

　　The Pleasures of Cooking for One by Judith Jones. Copyright © 2009 by Judith Jones. Published by Knopf. All Rights Reserved.Judith Jones is senior editor and vice president at Alfred A. Knopf. She is the author of The Tenth Muse: My Life in Food and the coauthor with Evan Jones (her late husband) of three books: The Book of Bread; Knead It, Punch It, Bake It!; and The Book of New New England Cookery. She also collaborated with Angus Cameron on The L. L. Bean Game and Fish Cookbook, and has contributed to Vogue, Saveur, and Gourmet magazines. In 2006, she was awarded the James Beard Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award. She lives in New York City and Vermont.