Quick roasted veggies

I forgot to thaw out meat for dinner last night, I was hungry, I didn't want to wait to eat, and my motivation is still running low. Solution? Oven roasted veggies.

I've got a plethora of roots on hand because they keep pretty well and I keep forgetting to use them, so I decided to go with parsnip, carrot, potato, and radish. I peeled all but the radish, then chopped them all up into various sized chunks and dumped them into a casserole dish.

I poured a couple tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil over the top, dumped in a tablespoon or so of kosher salt, and cracked a generous portion of black pepper across, then mixed it all up.

Finally, I dumped a bunch of shredded parmesan on top because cheese is life.

Half an hour in the oven at 350 worked out pretty perfectly. The veggies still had a little crunch to them (important to me), the cheese got just a touch crispy (also important to me), and it tasted pretty damn good. I would recommend that you dunk the veggies on top into the oil on the bottom before eating them. Definitely enhances the flavor and texture.

Next time, I'll probably let the veggies bake, mixing them about halfway through to get everything coated in the goodness, then adding the cheese and broiling it for a minute. That should help with the consistency of cooking as well as giving a little browning to the cheese.

Comments

Voices in my head, or: Why do I cook?

Every time I chop a vegetable, slice a steak, drop garlic into oil, or scrub a pan, I hear voices in my head: my mom, my dad, my grandmothers, friends from college like James and Liz, friends from adulthood like Rick and Claudio, internet friends like NerdyCap , and tv chefs like Gordon Ramsay, Jeff Smith, Anthony Bourdain, Jacques Pepin, and Alton Brown, all of the folks who have taught me, directly in person or indirectly through books, tv episodes, or live streams, about cooking. Steak frying with minced onion and minced garlic Sometimes I hear them instructing me on what I'm doing, the same words I've heard repeat in my head hundreds or thousands of times. "Don't let the garlic overcook or you'll get a bitter taste," mom says every time. Claudio often hits me with "If you hear them sizzling, they're sautéing. If they're quiet, they're caramelizing." "Why the fuck are you fucking doing this, you stupid donkey?!" ...

My Mexican restaurant

Some nights (and weekends), I just don't feel like cooking, so I do go out to local restaurants from time to time. My most frequent haunt is El Idolo, a Mexican place just on the edge of Bartlett, TN. It sits a good 1/8 of a mile from the geographic center of the county, so it's reached easily enough from everywhere. They also have the best damn margaritas in town. I've come here frequently and long enough (since they opened, to be honest), that I don't order a drink - my server brings my drink when I've been seated. Incidentally, I go for the medium (used to be large, but they added a new size that's for my Sundays only) margarita on the rocks, no ice, no salt. When a new server starts at "the 'Dolo" (as we call it), it usually takes them 2-3 visits before they remember, and then it's smooth sailing again. Most places that I've ordered this just mix a normal margarita, then top it off with their mix; the 'Dolo says, "nah, hermano,...

A Spicy Tuesday Night

In my younger years, I did not enjoy spicy foods. Luckily, I grew up... Recipe for habanero cream sauce Tonight for dinner, I made chicken and veggies with a new favorite: habanero cream sauce. I started with a couple mushrooms, a couple radishes, some shallot, a little yellow bell pepper, and a few cloves of garlic. I generally try to group ingredients by when I want to add them (I call them "firm," "soft," "aromatic," etc.). In this case, the sliced baby bellas and diced bell pepper were "soft," the sliced radish and slivered garlic were "hard," and the minced shallot and minced garlic were "aromatic." A little knife work, and they were ready to go, which meant it was time to tackle the habanero. I cut it up last just to help prevent getting that heat mixed in anywhere it didn't need to go. I mince that shit down so I can mix it around pretty thoroughly, and I threw that into the a...

ODG Eats

Search This Blog