Roasted Veggies

This week I have tried three new recipes and all of them have been good. I am telling you Mark Bittman is where it is at. Not only are his recipes very good but they are versatile and are very healthy portions. My favorite thing so far this week was the homemade tomato sauce I made last night. I threw some chicken in for good measure and it was awesome and super duper easy. I will post that soon but today I wanted to post the roasted vegetable recipe from earlier in the week. I had more vegetables in my house this week than I have ever had in one place in my entire life. I bought apples, bananas, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, parsley, potatoes, parsnips, onion, rutabaga, zucchini, tomatoes, garlic, celery, green beans and porcini mushrooms. I mean the apples, bananas, green beans, onion and garlic are standard items I buy every week but I had never even looked at a rutabaga or parsnips before. It was a little experiment that went well. This recipe calls for certain vegetables but you can certainly add in a few favorites if they are not listed or just alter it to whatever you have on hand. Just keep an eye on it b/c the cooking times might vary depending on how soft or sturdy the veggies you choose are. I added zucchini just b/c I had it left over from the vegetable soup I made the day before. Otherwise I was faithful to this list. This recipe can also be made with or without fish or meat. I opted for chicken tenders but if you are not meat inclined just leave it out.

You will need:

1/2 pound waxy potatoes
½ pound of carrots
½ pound celery root, turnips or rutabaga
½ pound parsnips or beets
1 medium onion chopped
3 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and pepper
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon fresh minced rosemary or sage (optional)
½ to 1 pound fish fillets, chicken breast or tender, boneless pork chops, or lamb ribs, divided in four portions (optional)
Juice of 1 lemon (optional)

1. Heat the oven to 450 degrees. Peel, clean and trim the vegetables as necessary and cut them into 1-inch cubes. Mix them together in a large roasting pan or baking dish along with the olive oil; sprinkle with a little salt and pepper.

2. Roast the vegetables for about 20 minutes, stirring once or twice, until they are just becoming tender. Add the garlic and herb if you are using it and toss to combine.

3. If you are adding fish, chicken or meat, lay it directly on top of the vegetables, brushing with some of the oil from the pan. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and return to the oven for another 8 to 15 minutes, depending on what your cooking, basting once or twice with the pan juices. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Add the lemon juice if you like and serve.

This makes about 4 servings. Ryan and I were able to eat it for two nights and it was plenty.