Not until I came across Pam Anderson’s wonderful cookbook, The Perfect Recipe for Eating Great and Losing Weight( see my Granola recipe for the link), did I ever consider roasting vegetables. Sure I’d had eaten a righteous roasted vegetable salad in my life but the concept of doing this myself was ludicrous. Until I learned that all it takes is a baking sheet, oil, a 425 degree Farenheit (220 degree Celsius) oven , and 20 – 25 minutes to roast uniformly medium cut veggies to perfection.
Vegetables that I’d previously written off as not a part of my eating or cooking vocabulary suddenly became exotic. Beets? I don’t make borscht and I like an occasional dose of sweet and sour beets in my salad bar trough. But roasting them renders them a delicacy and sort of unrecognizable. Roasted beets, who knew?
Cut them to a quarter-inch thick, toss them in oil and sea salt if desired, and lay them out on a baking sheet. The sugars bubble to the surface and they are tender and meaty and become a vegetable candy they’re so sweet. Carrots do a similar thing and they make a happy combination on any salad. Today I put them in with salmon, feta, and a raspberry walnut vinaigrette. I could have added apple and walnuts or substituted chicken and it would have been equally yummy.
Another vegetable that took me by surprise when roasted was green beans. I detest the squeak of a crispy green bean but when roasted, they have a meaty nutty texture. Then marinade these to put back on top of a salad and you are eating “out”suddenly. Roasted cauliflower is immensely popular these days. When roasted in cubes, sweet potatoes are a great potato salad base with craisins and apples and celery for crunch with a little Tumeric. And we always roast red potato cubes as a french fry substitute. Higher sugar content will make any veggie yummier with the roasting method.
If you have the oven on for a chosen meat already, consider being proactive and cooking up a sheet of veggies to eat on the rest of the week. Cut everything uniformly in half-inch widths and at 425 for 20 minutes, you will wonder like me, how you hadn’t started this practice a long time ago. Happy Veggie Roasting !
14 Comments
I roast beets with cumin, salt, pepper,lemon juice, olive oil- so delicious
The cumin twist is a very interesting one for the roasted beets Melissa. Yet, they are so meaty, I can see how that would work. Thanks for the idea.
OK. OK. I’ll try roasting some beets. Sounds pretty tasty!’
Shannon, it’s one of those, how did I miss this all my life moments. Thank you for stopping by my blog!
Love,
Shalagh
Once the temperature rises above 70, the oven ceases to operate in my house. Those beets are tantalizing though… Not sure if I can wait until October!
I can imagine Jennifer that using your oven in the small NY apartment in the Summer would be uncomfortable. They are like candy roasted. Do you make borscht?
I love roasted beets, used to pick them from my garden. yum. Thos photos are amazing! I am now hungry … 🙂
They have redeemed themselves a hundred times with this method Mariana. And they’re like a super food right? So you get smarter when you eat them or something so why wouldn’t you eat them especially when they are like candy this way. My friend Melissa said she tosses them with cumin, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper before roasting them. I can see them with some garbonzo beans and goat cheese for an afternoon snack salad. Done right?
Love Ya’,
Shalagh
Yes they’re meant to be a superfood. I can see that I should be eating far more beets! I used to roast them in olive oil and balsamic vinegar (yummy) but I’m going to try your cumin version next, it sounds delicious. xxx
Yes, I used to do roasted sweet potatoes, red potatoes, mushrooms, carrots, and onions tossed with olive oil, balsamic, s & p, and thyme when I did a pork roast. But the beets are really awesome. Thanks Mariana.
Stunning photos, Shalagh! That salad looks divine! I’ll have to try roasting green beans… sounds delish!
You mean you are not down with this method Christina? The only drawback is the fact that your hands get stained a bright beautiful fuschia color when you prep the beets. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
At the same moment you were writing this, I was thinking about you ! Thanks for saying “hi” and I hope hope hope to see you sooner than later.
Love,
Shalagh
Oh I am so down with roasted beets – love them! I’ve never roasted green beans, though. Can’t wait to try!
You are the healthful twins. I’m sure there’s some wonderful tips and tidbits you could tell me about as well Christina.