Roasted asparagus and lemon with chunky pesto

Roasted Asparagus and Lemon with Chunky Pesto

SERVES 4

Freshly roasted asparagus doesn’t need much more than good-quality olive oil and salt, but I’m a firm believer that pesto makes everything better. By hand-chopping pesto rather than whizzing it up in a food processor, you get more substantial bits of cheese and pine nuts in every bite. For attractiveness and brightness, I often throw in thin lemon slices with whatever I’m roasting. The heat mellows their acidity and softens the peel so you can eat the slices whole. Avoid using skinny asparagus when roasting, since those can get stringy and burn quickly.

Ingredients

• 1 bunch medium asparagus
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
• 1 lemon—1⁄2 cut into thin slices, 1⁄2 reserved for serving
• Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 (3-inch) chunk Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
• 2 tablespoons pine nuts

• 1⁄2 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves, coarsely chopped

• Preheat the oven to 450°F. Line a baking sheet with foil.

• Trim the asparagus by holding each stalk horizontally and bending until the tough, woody end snaps off. On the baking sheet, toss the asparagus with the olive oil, lemon slices, and salt and pepper to taste. Roast until the asparagus is tender and the lemon slices are lightly browned, about 20 minutes.
• While the asparagus is roasting, use the tines of a fork to crumble the Parmesan into small nuggets, about 2 tablespoons total. Pile the cheese, pine nuts, and basil together on a cutting board and chop until they’re well combined but still chunky.
• Transfer the roasted asparagus and lemon slices to a serving platter, add the chunky pesto, and toss together. Squeeze the juice of the remaining lemon half and top with a drizzle of olive oil.