Asparagus #1

Asparagus has got to be one of my favorite veggies. There is so much you can do with them.
You can eat them raw, al-dente, broiled, grilled, sauteed, any way really. So behold, this will be one of the many asparagus recipes I hold.

Did you know it was the only vegetable that the etiquette allows to be eaten with your fingers? When there is no sauce, obviously, otherwise... it could be a mess. So we can add finger food to the list as well.

It's a green food, so obviously you have all the goodness of vitamins and fibers that come with it.

So today, I'll share with you a quick recipe that you can use as a side dish to basically... anything.

Balsamic sauteed asparagus.

- One bunch of fresh asparagus
- 1 tablespoon of Earth Balance Vegan butter (or again, if you insist, use butter or margarine)
- 2 tablespoons of grape seed oil (or any kind of oil you have)
- 2 1/2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar
- salt and pepper.

1. To start off, rinse out the asparagus, dry them with a paper towel and chop off the bottom. About 1 1/2 - 2 inches should be fine. the bottom part is very chewy and full of lil fibers that stick in between your teeth. Not fun.

2. In a skillet or frying pan, a big one, over medium-high, drop in the vegan butter and the oil and let melt.

3. Once it's has melted, pop in the asparagus and saute for about 5 minutes or until they get really bright green.
Toss them with thongs once or twice.

4. Lower the heat a little bit, then drop in the balsamic vinegar, and toss, making sure every asparagus is well coated.

5. Then saute for about 10 minutes, tossing them around a few times. Add a pinch of salt and pepper.

You will see the balsamic form some kind of caramel around the asparagus. When that happens, it usually means they are ready. If you like them softer, leave them on the heat for another 5 minutes.

you can see the caramelizing of the vinegar

And serve! Voila!
Let me know what you think! :)