The process of roasting brings out the natural sweetness in vegetables and intensifies their natural flavors. The higher the density of the veggies, the longer the cooking time.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a jellyroll pan with foil (a baking sheet with sides), coat the foil with olive oil cooking spray. Cut your veggies into small chunks or hearty bite-size pieces.
Add a mix of any of the following: brussel sprouts, butternut squash, cauliflower, red onions, parsnips, red potatoes or carrots. Spread them out in a layer on the pan. Drizzle olive oil over them and toss them around to coat. Sprinkle on any desired seasonings. One combination I like is dried basil (or rosemary), parsley, marjoram, salt and pepper. Another combination of seasoning I like is garlic-pepper blend, marjoram and seasoned salt. I usually give them one more toss after seasoning.
Bake until veggies are lightly browned in areas, and tender. Check your roasted veggies after 25-30 minutes (this is the halfway point), and turn them over with a spatula, then cook until tender and nicely browned around some of the edges, about 25-30 minutes more.
You can do this with less denser veggies too (tomatoes, summer squash eggplant). They can take as little as 20 minutes to roast at 350-375 degrees, but if you’re baking them in a 400 degree oven along with medium and high density veggies, just cut them in larger, thicker pieces and the will handle the higher temp and longer cooking time. Make sense?
Some other ideas to use roasted veggies…
1)Make a veggie pizza gourmet by topping it with roasted veggies.
2)Use roasted veggies as all or part of the filling for your sandwich or pita pocket.
3)Use as a main dish if blended with nuts and cheese.
4)As a side dish to complement a meat, fish, or vegetarian entree.
5)Add them to soups, stews or salads will intensify the flavors of these dishes.
6)Add them to your favorite cold or hot pasta dishes.
Enjoy!
