One simple and easy dish to make for Thanksgiving Day is just roasted vegetables. I say this with a bit of surprise, because, when talking to people about this recipe, it took me aback at how many people don’t know how to roast vegetables.
Roasted vegetables are almost always on my Thanksgiving table. First off, because they are so quick and simple to do. Second, because they taste great, and third, because they make a really nice presentation.
Any vegetable can be roasted — peppers, parsnips, carrots, asparagus, tomatoes – it all depends on timing them right, and consistency of the size.
Simply Roasted Vegetables
Heat the oven to 400F
Choose the vegetables — Any dense vegetable can be roasted — squash, zucchini, onions, potatoes, asparagus, peppers. I always like to have interesting colors, so for Thanksgiving, I’ll choose Yellow and Red Peppers, Carrots, and Zucchini.
Once you’ve selected what you’d like, prep the vegetables — wash and cut them into pieces. The best is to cut them into uniform sizes, which works best for roasting.
Use a baking sheet, or roasting pan – as long as it is shallow. Drizzle oil over the bottom of the pan, and add in the vegetables. Mix them around to coat the vegetables. Sprinkle with kosher salt. Spread the vegetables out so they are in an even layer, and not too close together — they need room to roast, rather than steam.
Place the vegetables in the oven. Stir every 10 minutes. These should take about 30 minutes. However, the size matters here — if the pieces are small, the roasting time will be less, if the pieces are larger, the roasting time will be more. Just keep your eye on them once the time has reached 25 minutes, checking for doneness.
Serve immediately. Roasted vegetables look great on the table, especially when they are mixed colors, and always taste yummy.
