Tags
asparagus, food, fresh tomato salsa, garlic, lemon zest, roasted asparagus, roasted asparagus recipe, side dish, tomato salsa, vegetarian
Here’s the unofficial title of this post: I love out of season tomatoes!
I’m tired of talking about seasonal produce.
Some days, I want to eat a tomato in March April and just not care.
I can see I’ve shocked you just a little.
I won’t go so far as to say I’ll dive into a Beefsteak tomato this time of year, but I will purchase a pint of grape tomatoes and add them to my salad or in this case, a quick salsa.
I don’t want to feel the least little bit guilty about it.
That’s what motherhood is for.
There’s certain buzz words/phrases out there and “seasonal eating” is one of them. I know that the really good tomatoes won’t come into their prime until around July/August (in our area), but I can’t just cross them off my grocery list.
And, now that fiddlehead fern and ramp season is upon us, I’m feeling that seasonal produce pressure even more.
Wild leeks and the baby tips of ferns just about to unfurl aren’t on my list, though they probably should be. I want to fit in with the cool foodies out there, but I have children to feed who aren’t the least little bit interested in baby fern tips.
I asked and they said “no.”
There is a slightly higher chance that they’ll go for asparagus though. And, the likelihood grows exponentially (like a fern tip about to unfurl) if it’s been roasted and cheese is involved.
So for them, they’ll get the Parmesan cheese version of this roasted asparagus, but for me I’ll take the simple lemony salsa.
And, I’ll be loving every bite of my out-of-season tomatoes.
Roasting asparagus as in all vegetables is a very simple process. Tossing then with olive oil and a seasoning with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper before they go into your preheated oven is about as easy as is it gets.
Here they are on a baking sheet before I put them into the oven which was preheated to 400 degrees. Roast them for about 20-25 minutes.
And, here is the roasted asparagus topped with a simple salsa of tomatoes, lemon juice, lemon zest, minced garlic and Italian parsley. Delicious and it makes a very nice side dish.
Roasted Asparagus with Fresh Tomato Salsa
Ingredients
1 lb asparagus, trimmed
olive oil
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups small tomatoes, such as grape or cherry, cut in half
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp flat leaf parsley (Italian), chopped
zest and juice of 1 small lemon
Method
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and black pepper. Roast in the oven for 20-25 minutes. Toss the tomatoes, garlic cloves, parsley, lemon zest and lemon juice in a small bowl. Season with salt and black pepper to taste. Serve atop the roasted asparagus.
Serves: 4
Reblogged this on What's For Dinner?.
I love asparagus, but don’t ask me why, I’ve never baked them…looking at what you did, I think I should try!
This looks fantastic! I just did a whole post on new asparagus recipes I am excited to try!
Thanks SO much! 🙂
This is such a great side dish–I love asparagus and all the other veggies you used!
Love the colors and flavors here, Allison! Such a lovely side dish. Served on a silver platter, no less! 🙂
Now there’s a sign that Spring has arrived. Fresh asparagus!
Happy mother, happy kids. Glad you found these gorgeous tomatoes and vegetables. Just gorgeous and full of flavor, Allison. Spring has sprung.
Lovely! We also have out of season produce (shhh), but sometimes we just need to get lunch or dinner on the table, and it’s still better than takeaway, right? 🙂
Roasted asparagus are one of my favorite veggies to mak this time of year. Easy too. Adding the tomatoes is such a good idea! Beautiful dish!
I so agree with you and use grape and cherry tomatoes to satisfy my need for tomatoes until locally grown “good” tomatoes are available. I cannot help myself. Sometimes I need a tomato! I love asparagus, too, and I bet your fresh salsa goes very good with the tasty spears. Yum!
Not only does this look good, but the fresh tomato salsa looks amazing!
I love this! I have been trying to come up with a way to pep up my roasted asparagus. You must have read my mind.:)
Love the look of those roasted asparagus. They look really good. it’s pretty hard to eat seasonally in Singapore so I just buy what I want . Lovely addition of the tomato salsa!
This looks fantastic! I love the idea of a salsa with Asparagus! My husband will be wanting this dish!
Wow. that’s a nice healthy and tasty asparagus dish!!!
the color is superb….
Thank you, Dedy! I am so late in responding after taking a 7 month blogging break.
I hope you and your family are well!
Allison
Your food looks SO delicious & your pics SO beautiful!! You’ve encouraged me to embrace out of season tomatoes in the near future. I will miss the delicious in season, but I will try! Lol 🙂
Oh, Mimi! My apologies for responding so late (especially after you took the time to visit and leave a comment). I’m afraid my blog is like the houseplant sitting in the corner of my family room (completely ignored!).
Although we are still fully decorated for Christmas, I’m already dreaming about what will be planted in our spring garden. Of course, there will be lots and lots of tomatoes!
Thanks again for visiting!
Allison