Inexpensive when in season, spring-fresh asparagus adds tender, grassy flavor to any recipe. True the compound in asparagus makes urine ripe, but that's no reason to shy away from these pea-colored (white or violet) stalks. Their mild, fresh flavor makes them a crisp addition to raw salads; when steamed or poached, the grassy flavor becomes more assertive; roasting asparagus adds caramelized brown bits to the stalks, making them next-level delectable. 

Our keto vegan roasted asparagus, dressed simply with avocado oil and salt, makes a no-fuss side dish, or could be the bed for stacking keto-vegan protein and fat—try lupini beans or hemp seeds topped with our Shortcut Vegan Hollandaise Sauce (see recipe below). 

What Is Hollandaise Sauce?

Hollandaise sauce uses egg yolks, melted butter, and lemon juice to create a velvety, thick emulsion to drizzle on poached eggs, asparagus, Eggs Benedict, and more. It's one of the five "mother sauces" in French cuisine—that's mostly a fancy epicurean way of saying that hollandaise sauce is a foundational basic in French cooking. Just because hollandaise sauce has a simple ingredients list doesn't mean it's easy to make. Emulsion sauces can "break" or separate, meaning the clarified butter can separate from the egg yolks, or excessive heat can make the egg yolks curdle and create little clumps of scrambled eggs in a sauce that's supposed to be smooth. Of course there are hacks to fixing these whoopsies, but this level of delicacy and precision can be a bit precious for a home cook. 

How Do I Make Vegan Hollandaise Sauce?

To make a plant-based, vegan-friendly hollandaise sauce often includes mixing raw cashews, soaked (in water for at least an hour) and drained, with nutritional yeast, dijon mustard, water, and seasonings such as garlic powder and cayenne pepper. The ingredients for the vegan hollandaise sauce are blended in a high-speed blender or food processor, then heated gently on the stove to get it loosened up a bit and ready to serve.

But, if you're allergic to cashews, or you simply don't have a stock of them on hand in your pantry, you can make a vegan hollandaise sauce that's made without nuts (OK, cashews aren't technically nuts—they're drupes that grow out of the end of the base end of the cashew apple). Our super easy vegan hollandaise sauce contains only two ingredients and arguably packs more flavor than the cashew cheese option.

2 Ingredient Easy Vegan Hollandaise Sauce

Time: 1 minute

Servings: 8

Ingredients

• 1 lemon
• 1 cup Primal Kitchen Vegan Mayo 

Instructions

• Cut lemon in half. Squeeze out the juice and separate the seeds from the juice. Depending on how large and juicy the lemons are, you may not need to use all of the juice from the lemon.
• Place vegan mayo in a small bowl. Whisk in lemon juice, one tablespoon at a time, until the vegan mayo is thinned enough to spoon or drizzle as a sauce.

Nutrition info (per serving, or 2 tablespoons of the sauce):

Calories: 181

Carbs: 0 grams

Fat: 20 grams

Protein: 0 grams

Roasted Asparagus with Easy Vegan Hollandaise Sauce

Time: 15-18 minutes

Servings: 2

Ingredients

• 1 bunch asparagus* (about 12-14 medium spears)
• 1 tablespoon Primal Kitchen Avocado Oil
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 4 tablespoons Vegan Hollandaise Sauce (see recipe above)
• 1 teaspoon parsley, chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 375ºF. 
• Wash and dry asparagus. Cut off the last 1/2 inch of each asparagus stalk. 
• Place asparagus on a baking sheet. Drizzle with avocado oil and sprinkle with salt. Toss the asparagus with your hands to distribute the oil and salt.
• Place baking sheet in the oven and roast for 12 to 16 minutes, depending on the thickness of the stalks (skinny stalks need less time).
• Remove the asparagus from the oven, and plate. Drizzle roasted asparagus with the Vegan Hollandaise Sauce, parsley, and black pepper.

*Use more than one bunch to double or triple the recipe (you might want to; it's that good). 

Nutrition info (per serving; about 1/2 of the asparagus and sauce):

Calories: 266

Carbs: 4 grams

Fat: 27 grams

Protein: 2 grams

You might also like these other vegan recipes:

• Keto Vegan Rainbow Salad
• Whole30 Buffalo Sauce Cauliflower Wings
• Hummus with Avocado Oil
• Gluten-Free Chickpea Penne with Pesto, Broccoli, and Asparagus
• Grilled Portobello Mushrooms
• Golden Turmeric Tonic
• Savory Vegan Veggie Medley