Roasted Asparagus with Sun dried Tomatoes and Garlic

I. Love. Asparagus.

I could care less that is makes your pee stink. It is best fresh from the Farmer's Market, of course, but I can never resist buying it when it goes on sale at the grocery store. I mean really, who could? I usually just roast it in the oven with a little olive oil and sea salt, but last night I wanted something a little different....and you can't go wrong with sun dried tomatoes, am I right or am I right? So try the following and let me know how you liked it!

2 small bunches asparagus** (about 15 stalks in each bunch or so)
2 Teaspoons olive oil
3 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
1/2 small onion, sliced thin
5 whole sun dried tomatoes in oil, sliced thin
1/2 tsp dried basil
Sea salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Wash the asparagus spears making sure to wash the tips well. This is where sand gets collected, and trust me, gritty asparagus is not pleasing. Once washed, snap off the bottom of the stalks. Don't worry about how much snaps off, as it should break at the point where the stalk starts to get woody or stringy. I know cuz I watch the cooking channel. And trust me, you don't want to eat that part anyway. Once you've broken off all the ends, place the asparagus into a 13x9 inch baking pan. If they overlap that's fine.

In a small mixing bowl combine the rest of the ingredients. Pour in a little of the oil from the sun dried tomatoes if you like. Pour this over the asparagus and toss it around in the pan to get the sauce covering fairly evenly. Pop this in the oven for 20 minutes and check for done-ness. I like my asparagus just a tad crispy, but not raw. They should be just about done at this point. If you like them cooked longer just pop them back in. They may start to dry out, and if they do, feel free to cover the asparagus with tin foil. This will make them cook faster so check in another 4 minutes or so after covering. Remove from oven when done to your liking, let cool for a few minutes and enjoy!

Serves 4-5

**The cooking time here is for your average asparagus spear. If you can only find very thick, hulk-like asparagus, say more than 1/3 inch in diameter, then increase the cooking time. Similarly, if you find very thin (and therefore awesome!) asparagus then just watch them in the oven and make sure they don't overcook. No one likes a mushy asparagus spear.