Roast-a-thon: Asparagus, Kale

In this installment of the Roast-a-thon, we only have instructions for roasting two different vegetables. I wanted to provide you with a bonus recipe for the asparagus, but there was one problem. It was so good, we couldn't wait to eat it! The hubby and I ate a pound of asparagus in five minutes flat.

Roasted Asparagus

Ingredients:
Asparagus
Olive oil
Coarse-ground salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 400 F. Snap the woody ends off the asparagus. Place stalks in a freezer bag, drizzle with oil and toss to coat. (Add oil 1/2 tbsp at a time and toss, until you have enough to coat the amount of asparagus you're using.) Spread on a baking sheet in a single layer and sprinkle with salt and pepper. (I recommend coarse ground, because it's easy to over-season.) Bake for 20 - 30 minutes, depending on the thickness of the stalks. When the stalks begin to shrivel and the tips brown and crisp, it's done.

Let stand five minutes before serving for full flavor.

Roasted Kale (a.k.a. Kale Chips)


Ingredients:
1 bunch of kale (I use the flat-leaf Lacinato variety)
2 tbsp olive oil
Salt

Preheat oven to 400 F. Tear or cut the greens off the spine, and into pieces about 2 inches by 2 inches. In a bowl or freezer bag, toss with oil to coat. With your hands, carefully spread the leaves onto 2 baking sheets in a single layer, with as little overlap as possible. Sprinkle with salt.

Cook for ten minutes, then remove from the oven and turn pieces over. Spread them out again, avoiding overlap. Return to oven and cook until evenly crisp, about another ten minutes. Serve immediately, adding more salt if needed.