Good Sides (I want to be on yours)

Great side dishes are important to a meals success. Roasted veggies are welcome year round but especially in the winter--they just feel so warm and cozy.

Roasted Vegetables

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons butter 

2 baking potatoes (or several red skinned or fingerling potatoes)

1 yam
2 or 3 carrots
1 or 2 onions (sweet, yellow or purple)
1 bell pepper (red, yellow, orange or green)
1/2 lb asparagus (optional)
2 teaspoons kosher or sea salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 to 2 tablespoons fresh rosemary (or 2 teaspoons dried)
Turn oven on to 425 degrees. Place olive oil and butter in a large flat baking pan. Place pan in oven to heat oil and melt butter as oven heats up. Wash potatoes and cut into half slices about 1/4 inch thick, (or dice red potatoes into 1/2 inch cubes). Peel yams and cut like potatoes. Peel carrots and slice into 1 inch chunks. Peel onions and cut into eighths. Wash and cut bell pepper into 1/2 inch strips. Wash asparagus and remove woody ends. Take pan out of oven and put prepared vegetables into hot fats. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and rosemary. Toss to coat vegetables with fats. Return pan to oven and cook for approximately 45 minutes, stirring twice during cooking to achieve even browning. Test a carrot for softness to determine if cooking is complete.

Hints: Rosemary is my favorite herb to use but you can use any herbs you like or a combination of herbs. Adjust the salt and pepper to your tastes. Use any veggie combination or just red potatoes alone. Brussel sprouts are good to add and so are green beans. Keep the veggies in a shallow layer to get the proper roasting effect, if they are deep, they end up baking or steaming rather than roasting.

Vegetables that are done well really make my day. They are the best part of the meal to me. I remember my Mom making pot roast for my birthdays. I ate the beef but I feasted on the potatoes, carrots and onions that had been caramelized in the pot. Wow! that was good stuff.  Thanks Mom!