Fresh asparagus, trimmed, tossed with extra virgin olive oil and seasonings and air fried.

Air Fryer Roasted Asparagus

I love asparagus and I especially love it roasted and let me tell you, if you haven't tried it in your air fryer, you don't know what you're missing.

Roasting really brings out the sweetness in vegetables and intensifies the flavor and the air fryer is just another great option.

Shrimp and Pasta with Vegetables (Primavera)

Linguine pasta in a cream sauce with a mix of vegetables and shrimp.

Shrimp and Pasta with Vegetables

This dish came about when I found quite a few mixed bags of frozen vegetables up in my freezer that I had bought for something very specific that I had intended to make - but forgot about. That happens to me alot!

And I know, you're gonna say "now Mary. That's pasta primavera!" Well, yes, to a certain degree, it is!

Pasta primavera is an American dish of pasta in a cream sauce with fresh vegetables, typically fresh spring vegetables, and the primary difference here is that instead of those typical fresh vegetables, I used those frozen ones.

Waste not, want not, and plus, it shaves off a little time!

Fresh asparagus, oven-roasted with an olive oil and lemon vinaigrette. Top with cheese and buttered bread crumbs for a gratin.

Oven-Roasted Asparagus

Asparagus is my number one spring veggie. Yes, I know that it's available year round these days, but out of season it's not the best in my little ole humble opinion. The spears are often tiny and tough, and not nearly as flavorful as when they are at peak and in season in April and May.

It's very easy to cook also, with my number one favorite being a butter-steamed skillet method, followed by oven roasted. Air frying is really good too!

Fresh asparagus, cooked to crisp tender, then marinated in an oil and vinegar seasoned dressing with pimentos and finished with sliced grape tomatoes.

Cold Marinated Asparagus Salad

I am so happy to see that spring has arrived, though, much like the rest of the country, we had a bit of a cold snap to usher in the spring season. No snow in the south, but we did get temps down in the mid-30s, even here in south Mississippi.

No worries though... won't be long before we'll all be complaining about the heat, same as our northern neighbors tire of the snow! My A/C has already been running full time, though truly, I never turned the central heat on one time this winter. The few cold snaps we did have were covered just fine by my little Duraflame fireplace heaters.

A simple skillet meal of nicely seasoned shrimp and pasta with asparagus.

Skillet Shrimp and Pasta with Asparagus

Y'all already know that, being not only a gal from the Deep South, but also growing up right here on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, that I love my fresh from the Gulf seafood.

I have also talked here about how much I LOVE LOVE LOVE asparagus - any way you make it. Roasted, steamed, grilled and butter-steamed, asparagus is great as a side dish or included in other dishes. This is such a simple and easy skillet meal and the combination of asparagus with fresh shrimp is frankly, just downright delicious.

Skillet Asparagus

Fresh asparagus prepared by butter steaming in a skillet.

How to Prepare Asparagus

I have been a huge fan of fresh asparagus for years and love it just about any way that you can cook it - steamed, blanched, stir fried, grilled, roasted - the marinated bacon wrapped version is mighty delicious and a favorite of mine too.

Fresh asparagus spears, wrapped in bacon and cooked in a spicy brown sugar butter sauce.

Asparagus Bundles

If you've been around my recipes awhile, you probably remember when I featured The Sweet Potato Queen's bacon snack called Pig Candy, and that is the first thing I thought of when I saw these Asparagus Bundles in Trisha Yearwood's newest cookbook {affil link} 

This has truly been one of my most favorite cookbooks y'all - I have loved every one of her recipes that I've made, and heard great things from other readers about other recipes they've made from it.