Roasted Root Vegetables

I’m one of those people who’d rather eat a plate of steak tips or whole roasted chicken instead of a salad or raw veggies any meal of the week. My husband Jesse has to remind me to “eat my colors.” But this vegetarian recipe is so delicious I could eat it for days on end. This is a great fall dish to bring to potlucks or Thanksgiving celebrations. Make a bunch extra and use the leftovers to serve with some eggs for breakfast. Special thanks to my buddy, Pete, for introducing me to this doozie at our Friends’ Thanksgiving party a few years back.

parsnips
carrots
yams of all varieties
turnips
sweet potatoes
onions
garlic bunches
rosemary
fresh sage
sea salt
fresh ground pepper
coconut oil

• chop all the spuds, being sure to gouge out the eyes and shave off all the green skin (I like to take the skin off the sweet potatoes and yams completely, which can reduce the saponin content). I like to cut them into finger food sizes, like an extra stubby steak fry.
• get a pot of water boiling, 1/3 to half full
• once it’s boiling, add the sweet potatoes and yams and let them parboil. Don’t overcook, otherwise they will be too soft. They should be a bit undercooked when you strain them.
• vital behavior: save the water to use as a vegetable stock for soup. Yummy minerals!
• cut the onions into eights: first in half so you see the rings, then each half into quarters so each quarter has a little bit of the root to hold it together.
• cut the garlic into half so that you can lay them open on the baking sheet.
• when the spuds are strained and cooled, put all your chopped root vegetables in a bowl. Add some melted coconut oil and stir it up. I like to use my hands to make sure everything is coated properly.
• chop all the spices. Put the veggies on a cookie sheet and spice them up (optional secret ingredient: cinnamon. It counters the sweetness of the yams and naturally inhibits insulin release!).
• bake everything at 400 until the tops are slightly brown.
• if you want, go in there and stir everything up a bit halfway through.
• when they look done, they’re done.