Recipe Tuesday: Grilled Asparagus

I started the Game On! diet this morning, so I've been thinking about foods I should and shouldn't be eating. Luckily, one of my favorites, asparagus, is an unlimited green on the food plan, which means I can eat as much of it as I want (but only during meals; otherwise, it's a snacking penalty!). I've experimented with different ways to cook asparagus, and this is one of my favorites.

Ingredients:
1 lb asparagus
2 - 3 Tbs olive oil
juice of 1 lemon
2 - 3 Tbs chopped fresh dill
salt and pepper (optional)

You will also need a plastic baggie (gallon size, with a zip-top), a vegetable peeler, and a grill pan or tabletop grill.

Preheat the grill or grill pan. Rinse the asparagus, and chop off the bottom 1.5 - 2 inches. I usually do the whole bunch at once, if I can. Next, use the vegetable peeler to scrape off the stringy outer layer, leaving the tufty dark green stuff at the top of each spear. Yes, this is time consuming, but it makes a world of difference when you're not picking asparagus bits out of your teeth at the end of the meal. If your shoots are especially skinny, you could probably skip this part if you want. Next, put the asparagus spears in the plastic baggie and add the oil, chopped dill, and lemon juice (salt and pepper, too, if you want). Shake or roll the asparagus to get them fully covered with the oil mixture. Grill the asparagus spears (not in the baggie!) for about five minutes on each side.