Crunchy Baked Asparagus

Yesterday I set out to make a tasty dinner that you might get at a nicer restaurant with only things in my refridgerator. I wanted to try something new with asparagus so decided I wanted to bread it, but also wanted it to be healthy. I decided to bake it, but feared it might not get crunchy. It did though, and I will be using the recipe often, and probably with other veggies like green beans.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Prepare 3 dipping stations. I used bread loaf pans, but plates would also work.

Station 1: flour with salt and pepper.
Station 2: milk, hot sauce (optional), smoked paprika, garlic powder. You could use any seasonings you'd like.
Station 3: panko bread crumbs

Trim off the bottom part of the asparagus. To tell how far to trim, bend one piece and see where it naturally breaks. Trim that amount for all, this will keep them from being stringy.

Dip the asparagus in the milk mixture, then flour, then milk, then panko.

Place on a cookie sheet with Pam cooking spray.

Cook for about 20 minutes, until the panko is turning a bit more brown.

I made a dipping sauce with mayo and balsamic vinegar. Ketchup or ranch dressing would also be good. Or a mayo wasabi dipping sauce!