Snapshots From Italy: Hammer Your Spears Recipe

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   I boil the asparagus in salted water until they just begin to yield to pressure, about 3 to 4 minutes. Drained, they go into a foiled-lined, shallow baking pan, spears forward and no space between them; Mom always used a pie tin, so that remains my sentimental favorite. I drizzle them with a little olive oil and roll them around to coat them, and then sprinkle them heavily with grated Parmigiano Reggiano or Grana Padano. Last, and most important, I dot them evenly with unsalted butter cut into tiny cubes. The spots where the butter melts get especially brown and almost crisp, and I like that this effect is slightly uneven.

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   Put the pan in a hot, 400-degree oven, and roast the heck out of them, until they are slightly browned and bubbling. Yeah, they'll go from bright-green to that olive-colored tint of doom that tender-crispers bemoan. But trust me, a bunch of spears never had it so well.

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