Simple, Green

Hurray and Hallelujah, here they are, the first local, fresh asparagus of the season!

This is the exact color of the grass on the hills of the Carmel Valley right now, so bright a chartreuse that it seems lit from within. The winter rains in northern California change the hills from the gold of summer to this luscious green, a miraculous resurgence of life that seems at odds with the rest of the country where winter colors are off the spectrum into gray, black and white. My favorite color is new green.

I dithered about how to prepare them - steam? saute'? soup? - but finally decided simply to grill them, brushed with a hint of olive oil, until they developed little brown spots and turned this bright, shiny spring green. I didn't even salt or pepper them, just washed them and snapped the stems before laying them with reverence across the bars of the grill.

We ate them with a fat pork chop, applesauce and roasted potatoes - winter giving way to spring on the plate as well as outside the window. Happy Spring!