Today: Roasted Root Veg

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OK in all honesty this is winter food.  It's hearty, warm, and filling.  But I am still finding turnips and parsnips at the market, so I got a bunch of root vegetables together and roasted them up.  

Here's what I generally do.

You'll need

  • some combination of parsnips, turnips, rutabaga, sweet potato.  I tend to do a couple parsnips, a rutabaga, and a turnip; of course, use what you have, what looks good, and/or what's at the market.
  • salt and pepper
  • fat of your choice - I like bacon fat, because I always have a mug of it in the refrigerator, but olive oil or butter will also work just fine.
  • sheet pan (baking sheet, cookie sheet, whatever you call it)
  • oven
  1. Heat the oven to 425F
  2. Cut the vegetables into half-inch cube-type shapes.  I don't get persnickety about it, but it's good to get them all around the same size. 
  3. Toss the vegetables in your fat. If you're using a solid fat (bacon or butter) then you'll need to melt it enough to toss the veg in.
  4. Salt and pepper the vegetables generously.  
  5. Roast the vegetables for about 10 minutes; check and stir/turn them over so they roast evenly
  6. Roast the vegetables another 10-15 minutes, or until they're brown around the edges and still soft in the middle.

If you want to add some more zing, you can make a little vinaigrette and toss them with it while they're still warm.  Sometimes I'll cut the veg more like coins or slices, and let them get a bit firmer and eat them like chips once they've cooled.  Another option is to use your favorite spice mix in place of the salt and pepper.  Curried roasted root veg sounds delightful, no?