My little garden produced a lot of asparagus this year… enough for me to eat a few spears almost every day and to also give some to my neighbors. Sadly, asparagus season is over. I picked it from February till the end of April. All asparagus that pops up now will eventually grow to about 4-6 feet high with feather-like foliage. This foliage absorbs the energy needed to produce spears next year.

During the season, I pick asparagus daily, put it in jars with a little water, and store it in the refrigerator. This keeps it fresh without going bad. The spears actually keep growing and can be kept in the fridge for a while. I honestly don’t know for how long as I eat it within a week while it’s still good.

When I’m ready to cook it, I wash it in cool water and cut off the tough ends.

Then I drizzle a little olive oil on it and sprinkle it with sea salt and pepper.

I put the spears on the grill which is set to medium high heat and cook it on each side for a couple of minutes. The time can be adjusted depending on how you like your asparagus cooked. I like mine to have a little crunch.

My homegrown asparagus has a gorgeous flavor compared to store bought. It’s sweet with a mild grassy taste. Asparagus contains a lot of sugar when picked but rapidly forms starch molecules and loses flavor. So the sooner it’s eaten, the sweeter it is.

And one more thing… for those of us who suffer from PASUD (Post Asparagus Stinky Urine Disorder), the funny fragrance is produced when certain chemicals in asparagus are metabolized. However, studies have shown that people with a particular gene simply don’t smell the odor.