Boastin' About Your Roastin'

It is officially FALL...so you know what that means? Time to roast some veggies!! During the summer it's too hot to turn on the oven, but as soon as that crisp air hits, I'm ready to start roastin' me some veggies. They are one of my FAVORITE things to cook and not just because they taste de-LICIOUS. Roasted veggies are super easy to make, they can be used in/added to basically any recipe, and if you make a big batch of them at the beginning of the week (which I often do), they'll last you through Friday!  


How do you roast veggies? Here's the basic idea: preheat your oven to 400-425 degrees fahrenheit (depending on the strength of your oven). Cut your veggies (whatever veggies you want & however many you feel like!) into 1-2 inch pieces (make sure they're all the same size, otherwise they'll cook at different speeds). Also, mince 2-3 cloves of garlic. Place all the cut vegetables and minced garlic into a bowl, drizzle with 1-2 tablespoons of oil (amount of oil depends on how many veggies you're cooking and either olive or canola oil is fine), and sprinkle 1 teaspoon of ground pepper, plus 1-2 teaspoons of whatever other dried herbs you'd like to add (e.g. dried oregano, basil, cayenne pepper, sage, herbs de provence, rosemary, etc.). Toss the veggies, garlic, oil, and spices together - make sure to coat all the vegetables. Evenly spread the veggies onto a baking sheet (you may need more than one) and place in the oven for 10 minutes. 

After 10 minutes, check on the veggies, using a spatula to toss them around, then continue cooking them for another 10-15 minutes. The veggies are done with they have a crisp (but not burned) look to them and can be easily pierced by a fork.
To store: keep roasted veggies in an air-tight container in your fridge. Whenever you want to use them, just open the container and scoop out the amount you want to use. Simple, easy, delicious...love it!


Last week I made two different meals with a small batch of roasted vegetables. The first was Roasted Veggies mixed with Orzo (I got the idea from a recipe I read in a magazine), the second was Roasted Veggies on top of Cheesy Polenta (a dish I created last winter, that I absolutely love to make and eat). I'll post the recipes (with pictures) tomorrow, but in the meantime, here are some other ideas for how to use your batch of roasted vegetables: 

• Put them in a sandwich wrap
• Add them to a salad (with mixed greens or grain-based)
• Cook them with eggs (great for dinner AND breakfast!)
• Make them into a casserole (just add some rice, put the whole mix in a casserole dish, top with canned crushed tomatoes & cheese, bake for 15-20 minutes!)
• Eat them as a side dish with meat/fish

Roasting doesn't take very long (I do it on weeknights all the time); but for those of you with very little time to cook during the week, this is a perfect cooking activity for a Sunday afternoon/evening. Just make yourself a big batch of roasted veggies and enjoy having this tasty treat all week long in any breakfast, lunch, or dinner recipe you want! Trust me, when you start making your veggies this way, I guarantee you'll be boastin' about your roastin'!