Baked Asparagus with Parmesan Recipe

Baked asparagus with parmesan cheese on a white plate. A small bowl of lemon wedges and a blue and white striped napkin are on the right.

Baked Asparagus with Parmesan Recipe

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: Italian

Diet: Gluten Free, Vegetarian

Keyword: baked asparagus with parmesan

Prep Time: 5

Cook Time: 10

Total Time: 15

Servings:

Calories: 78kcal

Try this baked asparagus recipe with parmesan and lemon for holidays and special occasions, but also to liven up your weeknight routine. It's ready in about 15 minutes and you only need 3 ingredients!

Print Recipe

Equipment

Ingredients

1 pound asparagus
1 tablespoon olive oil
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese about 1 ounce
zest and juice of one lemon

Instructions

Grate the parmesan on the small holes of a box grater and set aside. Use a microplane grater to zest the lemon, then cut it in half.
Wash the asparagus and dry it gently with a kitchen towel. Trim the stems off the asparagus by bending gently near the bottom until they break off.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place the asparagus on the baking sheet, then drizzle with the olive oil and add salt and pepper. Mix them around until evenly coated, then spread them out a little.
Bake the asparagus on the center rack of the oven for about 6 - 8 minutes until it is bright green and has softened slightly but is not mushy.
Remove the asparagus from the oven and scoot the stalks closer together. Top with all of the parmesan cheese. Bake it for another 2-3 minutes until the cheese is melted. Remove from oven, transfer to a serving plate and top with the lemon zest and a squeeze of lemon juice. Serve with extra lemon wedges on the side if desired.

Notes

It's important to use parchment paper for this recipe. The baked asparagus won't stick to the pan, but the parmesan will. If you use parchment, you'll get melted parmesan seeping between the asparagus stalks, AND you'll still be able to scoop that up and put it on the plate. Without parchment, it just sticks to the sheet pan and goes down the drain with the dirty dishes, which is sad and bad.
Don't forget to spread the asparagus out a bit so there's space in between each stalk when you put it in the oven. If they are too close together, instead of getting baked, the asparagus will steam and get soggy, and it will be hard for the parmesan to stick to them.
Be sure to read the post above for tips on choosing and trimming asparagus, why 400 degrees F is the best baking temp, and more!

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Nutrition