Vegetables Made Easy

It’s a lot easier to eat your vegetables when you prepare them to bring out their flavor. Roasting them lets you taste the vegetables, and not some sauce to cover them up. Vegetables contain natural sugars and the roasting brings out that delicious caramelization that tastes so good.

You will want to choose vegetables that can be cut into pieces of the same size to ensure that they cook evenly. One of my favorites is cauliflower with chunks of red onion and whole garlic cloves. Chunks of zucchini, onion, and bell peppers taste great together too. You can be creative here. Even if you don’t have much cooking experience, it’s easy to make veggies that taste good.

This preparation method is a time saver for me. I usually roast a large pan of veggies on the weekend and keep them in the refrigerator for the upcoming week. When I get home from work, the vegetable portion of my meal is already prepared.

So here is my simple, easy, and healthy preparation for vegetables.
1. Preheat oven to 425°F.
2. Rinse vegetables thoroughly with cold water before cooking.
3. Cut the vegetables into pieces that are the same size so they cook evenly.
4. Lay the vegetables on a baking sheet. Spray with olive oil cooking spray and sprinkle with salt and your favorite herbs.
5. Roast for 15 to 20 minutes. Stir the vegetables and roast 10 to 15 more minutes.
6. Enjoy hot or cold without added sauces or fats.

Roasting is fast, easy, tastes great and lets you enjoy the vegetable the way it was meant to be. Simple is better!

Eat Smarter…
Vicki Bovee, MS, RDN, LD