ROASTED VEGETABLES

Roasting vegetables is fairly easy and it requires very little work on your part once you've got the vegetables ready to go into the pan and then the oven. I prefer to line my baking sheets with parchment paper as it cuts down on the messy burns on the sheet pan. I also like to roast them on my "convection roast" setting at 325º for about 45-60 minutes, depending on the vegetable. If you don't have convection, you should preheat the oven to 350º for a 45-60 minutes roasting time. Checking periodically is key as well. You don't want thinner slices of vegetables to burn while others are taking their good natured time (like carrots or fennel) to roast!

I like to assemble all the vegetables and prepare them each in their own turn. I do, however, for time and space considerations, consolidate the vegetables in the pan(s). Tomatoes are done separately; especially if they are cherry tomatoes and for that, I use a heavy cast iron pan.

2 boxes cherry tomatoes

2 tbs. olive oil

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. fresh finely chopped thyme or about the equivalent of dried thyme

Pour the olive oil in the pan with the salt and thyme. Put all the cherries in the pan and roll them around with your hand until they are completely covered in the oil, salt and thyme. 

Put in the preheated oven and roast for about an hour. I like mine just a little more done than what is normally called for and if you like that, look for caramelized wrinkles at the bottom of the tomatoes and shrinkage**. 

Tomatoes prepped for the oven

Sometimes, I'll go the whole distance and make the effort to slice all of the tomatoes in half. The tops of the tomatoes glisten and most, but not all, of the juices evaporate. What is left, however, is rather outrageous; in fact they're almost sticky but ever so sweet. When I roast halved tomatoes like this, I use it for tomato and almond pesto (recipe to come soon), which I put on tagliatelle or tagliolini with bread crumbs.  

1 eggplant

2 zucchini

3 carrots

6 cloves garlic (un-peeled) 

1/2 lb. small bell peppers (tricolore)

Cut off the ends of the eggplant and the zucchini and slice them from top to bottom. Peel the carrots and cut them in half lengthwise.

Place parchment paper on two roasting pans and put the eggplant slices on one of them and sprinkle with salt to sweat them. After 15 minutes, turn them over and sprinkle some salt on them again. After 15 minutes, brush them with olive oil, turn them and brush the other side. Place zucchini in the same pan (there will be plenty of room in both pans for this) and brush the oil on them as well. Do the same with the carrots, salt the zucchini and the carrots and then put the garlic cloves in the pan. As you can see, I had a stray peach in the fridge, so I roasted that too, but ate it immediately after taking it out of the oven. Delicious!

Put all the trays in the oven (if you do it with the tomatoes, push the tomatoes to one side and make room for one of the trays in the middle rack and put the other tray on the lower rack of the oven. Roast for about 45 minutes and check to see if they are done. If the oil is bubbling and everything glistens, they're done, but always take a knife or a cocktail fork and see if the flesh is soft  when gently pressed. The garlic will be slightly brown and soft, but not mushy.

** Years and years ago - and I mean ages - there was a woman from Belgium who lived and cooked in the wilds of Wisconsin named Madame Cuny. She had a restaurant in the countryside as well as a restaurant and cooking school in downtown Milwaukee on the very fashionable Jefferson Street. She was a tyrant with her students as well as in the kitchen and she carried some of that demeanor into the restaurant unfortunately, which ultimately led to her demise as a business woman. However, I was there for lunch one day, with, in fact, the same person who dined with me recently at Pastiche (some friendships grow and last!) when I was in Milwaukee a couple of weeks ago. Well, to make a long story short, I can't remember what I had, but it was served with roasted whole tomatoes which were the most extraordinary tomatoes I have ever tasted. They were deep, deep Indian red with no skins but perfectly whole and even though they were somewhat browned, the juices which flowed from their tender flesh was indescribably delicious: caramel, oranges, anise, salt and yet it was always the tomato which stood center stage. I was transported and I told her so. In her very characteristic tone, she only sniffed in agreement and walked away. I'm sure she didn't want me to see her smiling.