Photo: Hannah Whitaker

Unlike many summer vegetables, which can go from the garden to your plate with nothing but a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkling of salt, spring veggies sometimes need a little more love. And what food has more superpowers than bacon? Now the subject of a reality show and the crowning glory of a new fast-food ice cream sundae, there doesn't seem to be anything the cured meat can't do. Biting leeks? Sharply-flavored asparagus? Lettuce that lacks oomph? Bring them on. Here's how to use bacon's savory, sweet and smoky qualities to smooth out the occasional rough edges you find in three popular kinds of April produce.

Leeks: Most risotto recipes require standing at the stove and stirring the pot continuously; this simpler version lets the oven do all the work. Follow this basic recipe but substitute 1 large or 2 small spring leeks for the onions.

Asparagus: Rub the spears with olive oil and season with pepper, then gather 3 to 4 together and wrap them in a strip of bacon. Lay on a pan with slots or holes set over a jelly roll pan to catch the grease, and roast in a 400-degree oven for 10 minutes.


Spring lettuce: Salads are all well and good, but no dish combines fresh, raw vegetables and just-fried bacon to the effect that a BLT does. Pile bacon, butter lettuce and roasted tomatoes (since they aren't in season yet, roasting them is the best way to give them instant flavor) on toasted bread--and be sure to use a generous slathering of mayo.

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