Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Roasted Veggies

My new favorite way to eat vegetables is to roast them. I've used this method with sweet potatoes, carrots, parsnips, broccoli, zucchini, and asparagus. I really like it with broccoli and asparagus. It's like eating green french fries.

1) Preheat the oven to 400-425 (lower for green veggies, higher for starchy ones)
2)Chop up your veggies or trim the ends off the asparagus stalks
3) Drizzle with olive oil
4) Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and minced fresh garlic (1-4 cloves, depending on the volume of veggies you're working with)
5) Toss it all together till it's well coated
6) Place in oven for 10-20 minutes until veggies are browned and a little crispy, turning once or twice while cooking

Last night I made broiled steaks (see previous recipe) and just put the asparagus on the broiler pan with the steak. Even at the higher heat, they did just fine. Experiment with all your veggies! Make thin slices of sweet potato for home-made fries. Try sprinkling with some parmesan cheese or lemon rind/juice after cooking.

Steak with the broiler

Preheat the broiler. Season the steaks with salt and pepper, and place on a rack at least 2 to 3 inches below the heat source. Cook for 5 to 6 minutes per side for medium-rare, and about 7 minutes per side for medium, turning them once. About 1 minute before removing the steaks from the broiler, place a round or pat of butter on top of each steak and let melt.