It was mid-April and the asparagus was everywhere.  This translates to about $2 per pound.  I love how it’s displayed, except for worrying about those stalks standing on their delicate little heads!  (And notice that the nice tender skinny stalks are separated from their sturdier, stockier [pun intended] siblings!)

We had asparagus pasta, too.    So simple, like most all the pastas we had.  Perfectly al dente bowties, in this case, with a very light sauce that was steamed pieces of asparagus, probably in a bit of olive oil,  a dash of lemon juice, and perhaps a spoonful or two of chicken or vegetable broth.  No discernible onion, garlic, or herbs.  You tasted the asparagus.  If you wanted, you could sprinkle a teaspoon of grated Parmesan over it.  There was nearly always a (quite) small dish of Parmesan on offer, but you clearly were to use it as an accent, like salt or pepper, rather than as a main player.

Now when I make pasta at home, it is a simpler and ‘cleaner’ dish.  Thank you, Italy.