Asparagus Gratin

I can imagine the consternation of some readers upon discovering this entry in a book devoted to “cheap food.” As a side dish, it is a luxury; as a main course, it is a satisfying, nutritious, delicious, and inexpensive meal. Just pretend it’s Lent, or that you’re a vegetarian, and remember that you don’t need meat every day. Vegetarian meals needn’t be dull, although some of their evangelists do their utmost to make it seem that way. You might appease the meat maniac with a bitey sa