When I read in the Department of Salad* that it was officially asparagus season where she lives, I felt a serious pang of jealousy.

Here in Upstate New York, we are many weeks away from asparagus season as well as from rhubarb (and ramp! and pea!) season.

Alas, I know better by now than to fret about it. Instead, the next time I was at the market, I picked up the fattest spears I could find and made this favorite Joshua McFadden recipe: raw asparagus salad with walnuts and parmesan.

The recipe comes from his book, Six Seasons, and it's a salad I find impossible to stop eating. Every time I make it, I think about something Joshua writes in the book, how his goal is for every recipe “to taste like a potato chip,” meaning it should be “so tasty and savory that you can’t help but take one more bite…and then another.”

In this recipe, the “dressing,” a mix of toasted bread crumbs, walnuts, parmesan, fresh lemon, and olive oil, is what keeps you going back for more — it’s textured, highly acidic, and has a nice kick thanks to a hefty amount of crushed red pepper flakes.

The original recipe calls for mint, too, but I never have it this time of year, and I never miss it either. Hope you love this one as much as I do.

Raw Asparagus Salad

*Friends: Do you read the Deparment of Salad? It's written by Emily Nunn, and she is the funniest. This recent one about tostada salads made me laugh out loud multiple times.

Frozen Artichokes

A few years ago, I learned about frozen artichoke hearts from Heidi Swanson's Super Natural Simple, and they've been a staple in my freezer ever since.

This time of year — when I want something hearty like cauliflower or sweet potatoes but I'm tired I've roasting vegetables — I'll do this once or twice a week: heat a few tablespoons of oil in a hot skillet, add the frozen artichokes, cook for 4 to 5 minutes, lowering the heat as needed.

The artichokes brown and caramelize so beautifully, and they're so, so tasty! Sometimes I'll throw kale (about 1/2 a pound) into the skillet and splash in some vinegar at the end.

Frozen artichokes, unfortunately, are not the easiest to find. I stock up whenever I make a Whole Foods run. From a quick Google search, it looks as though Wegmans sells them, too.

6 More Recipes to Make this Week

Roasted Asparagus with Balsamic and Parmesan While I love using fat asparagus spears for raw preparations — they're easier to slice on the bias or shave into ribbons — I love using thin asparagus for roasting.