I find roasting vegetables to be the most delicious method of cooking them. One of my favorite techniques is using whatever extra veggetables we have in our house, particularly the ones that are getting old, toss them in olive oil, add salt and pepper, and bake at 400 for 30-40 minutes. Almost all vegetables roast well. In fact, the only one I don’t roast is broccoli because it dries out too much.
The veggie tray is great for many reasons. First, it uses up some of the veggies that are going or will soon go bad. Second, it leaves a ton of leftovers that you can have for lunch (yes, I eat the veggies for lunch by themselves, they are that good) or feed the kids for dinner by simply reheating. Third, you can eat all you want…it’s all good for you–stuff your face!!! And finally, it is healthy, easy, and tastes awesome. Just toss, place on a cookie sheet, and close the oven door.
In this particular tray I used, Chopped carrots, green beans, a container of Brussel Sprouts (sliced), zucchini (rough chopped), and butternut squash (cubed in small pieces). I tossed them in a big bowl with olive oil, added salt and pepper, and roasted for about 40 minutes (start tasting them at 30 minutes for doneness). Seperately, I roasted some baby beets in aluminum foil in the same oven for the same 40 minutes.
After I had the veggies in the oven for about half an hour and they were almost done, I sauteed an onion, a bunch of asparagus (chopped in bite-sized pieces), and 2 leeks on a pan. I highly recommend that you make that as a side dish on its own one day. But for this dish, I love combining the onions and leeks with all the other veggies because it gives it more of a stir-fry flavor and texture. Cobine the veggies from the tray with the onions, leeks, and beets. And that is it!
Ingredients: Olive Oil, Salt, Pepper, Carrots, Beets, Green Beens, Asparagus, Leeks, Onion, Brussel Sprouts, Butternut Squash, Zuchinni (Healthy enough for you?)
There is really no limit to what you can do with this dish. You can choose to make the dish how I make it, or you can simplify your life and just roast the veggies. You don’t HAVE to roast the beets seperately or sautee onions and leeks. I just love it that way and don’t mind the extra steps. Feel free to add or subtract any veggie you want…you are only limited to your imagination and the produce section of your grocery store.
Along with the veggie tray, I made wild-caught salmon with an Asian 5 spice rub. This is super easy. Make sure to pull all the bones out of the Salmon (tweezers work like a charm). Put the rub on, add your favorite Asian sauce on the Salmon (they are often high in sugar, but only a little will crust on the salmon after Broiling). Then place it directly under the broiler for about 6-8 minutes. Remeber to use wild-caught salmon, it is MUCH better for you than the alternatives. Also remember that when using the broiler you should always leave the door open so you can watch the food. It can go from awesome to burnt in no time.
The meal was delicious and filling. We made so many vegetables that the next day we had leftovers for lunch. Caro gave the remaining salmon the following day to the kids with a sweet potato and they devoured it.
Below is a picture of the Heirloom carrots I used in this dish, the veggies being tossed together in the bowl, and the final product respectively.
