L ifestyles /C ulture
A Melange of Roasted Vegetables
F O OD
AS I MOVE into fall, roasting
replaces grilling or sautéing
as my preferred way to cook
vegetables. Partly, this is due to fall
produce lending itself beautifully
to roasting — carrots, parsnips,
squash and Brussels sprouts
prepared this way will convert even
the most ardent carnivore, but it
also has to do with the weather.

As the temperatures drop, we are
indoors more, and crave heartier,
more warming foods.

Roasting vegetables brings
out a depth of flavor that you
simply do not get from a sauté,
steam or grill. The dry heat
caramelizes the natural sugars
in the vegetables, and a nutty,
toasty flavor emerges with
minimal effort by the cook. My
favorite type of recipe!
The most basic preparation
of oil/salt/pepper produces
spectacular results, and I
heartily encourage you to try
that with any and all veggies at
your disposal. As to the oil, you
can use what you have or what
you prefer — I like olive oil for
flavor and health, but canola,
corn or vegetable is just fine. I
always line the pan with parch-
ment because I detest scrubbing,
but if you don’t have parchment,
just skip that step and proceed.

The following recipes
branch out a bit more from
the basic salt/pepper/oil and
integrate additional flavors
into this useful technique.

CUMIN-ROASTED CABBAGE
Serves 6-8
I served this with a vegetarian
Indian menu, and it was a
huge hit. Using both green and
red cabbage made for a nice
presentation, but you can use
one whole head of whatever
you have lying around.

½ head green cabbage,
coarsely chopped
JEWISHEXPONENT.COM ½ head red cabbage,
coarsely chopped
⅓ cup oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon cumin seeds
½ teaspoon black pepper
Heat your oven to 375 F. Line a
rimmed cookie sheet with parch-
ment. Place the cabbage in the
pan and drizzle it with oil. Toss
with your hands to distribute oil
evenly. Sprinkle with salt, pepper
and cumin and toss again.

Roast the cabbage for 40
minutes, stirring occasionally,
until it is beginning to brown.

PAPRIKA-ROASTED HONEYNUT SQUASH
Serves 4
Honeynut squash is butternut
squash’s smaller, sweeter cousin.

This recipe works well with any
fall squash — delicata, acorn,
butternut, etc. It was delightful
with roasted chicken.

4 small honeynut squash,
cut in half, stems and
seeds removed
2 tablespoons oil
1 tablespoon honey
Pinch salt
Sprinkle of black pepper
Dusting of smoked paprika
Paprika-roasted honeynut squash
from toast to yogurt, and
adds a wonderful flavor to just
about any savory dish. If the
version of za’atar you are using
includes salt, you may want to
omit the salt from this recipe.

I used assorted colored
carrots, which made for a
lovely visual, but the standard-
issue orange variety works just
fine. For quicker cooking, you
can slice the carrots into coins,
but I like the presentation of
the whole carrots for this dish.

No need to peel them, which is
an added bonus for the cook.

1½ pounds large carrots,
rinsed, stem ends removed
¼ cup oil
1 tablespoon za’atar
½ teaspoon salt (optional)
Heat your oven to 375 F.

Line a rimmed baking sheet
with parchment. Place the
carrots in a single layer on the
parchment, and drizzle them
with oil. Toss with your hands
to coat evenly. Sprinkle the
carrots with za’atar and salt (if
using) and roast for 40 minutes
until golden brown.

Heat your oven to 350 F.

Line a baking pan with parch-
ment. Place the squash, flesh
side up, in the pan. Drizzle the
squash with oil and honey so
that surface is lightly coated,
and then sprinkle it with salt,
pepper and paprika. Bake for
45 minutes until softened.

ROASTED TOMATOES
Serves 4
ZA’ATAR-ROASTED CARROTS
Serves 4
Za’atar is a Middle Eastern
spice blend; the ingredients
vary depending on where you
are and who is making it, but
they generally include thyme,
sumac and sesame seeds. It can
be sprinkled on everything
As tomato season wanes and
the quality of the fruit begins to
decline, roasting is a wonderful
way to coax maximum flavor
out of the last of the crop. These
can be served hot as a side
dish, cold in a salad, spread
onto bread or sandwiches,
mashed into a sauce (curry,
JEWISH EXPONENT
Cumin-roasted cabbage
Za’atar-roasted carrots
Photos by Keri White
marinara or any other type
1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
you can conceive of), or stirred
Generous sprinkling fresh
into a soup. They are supremely
cracked pepper
versatile and oh-so-delicious.

I used plum tomatoes because
Heat your oven to 350 F. Line
that was what my market had a baking pan with parchment.

for sale, but any variety such as Place the tomatoes, cut side up,
Roma, beefsteak, etc., works fine. in the pan and drizzle them
with oil. Sprinkle them with salt
2 pounds tomatoes,
and pepper and roast for 45-60
cut in half
minutes until the tomatoes are
beginning to collapse.

¼ cup olive oil
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