Roasting vegetables brings out their natural sugar (yes, even vegetables contain some sugar but it is nothing to worry about). While they don't actually become dessert-sweet, roasting does create a whole different flavor profile. It often mellows the flavor of some of the more pungent vegetables such as radishes and fennel. It sweetens others like carrots and cauliflower. It adds a savory rich taste to vegetables like mushrooms and broccoli. In fact, broccoli is one of my favorite vegetables to roast as the little tiny flower buds on the florets get lightly browned and crisp. Add some garlic and oh my - broccoli as you've never had it!
There really is no vegetable that you can't roast. If you have a lot of something that you need to use up, roast! Roasting evaporates some of the water so the volume of the vegetable will be quite a bit smaller after roasting.
Garlicky Roasted Broccoli
Serves 2
4 cups broccoli florets (see note)
4 garlic cloves, minced
Preheat oven to 450. Spread the broccoli florets on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking sheet. Roast in hot oven 5 minutes. Remove sheet from oven and sprinkle the minced garlic over all. Return to oven and roast 3-4 more minutes until broccoli is desired tenderness but still bright green.
This recipe can be used for any vegetable, the only difference will be the roasting time. Hard vegetables like potatoes and carrots will take much longer. Check them often for browning and tenderness.
Note:
To easily cut the florets from a stalk of broccoli, hold the broccoli by the stalk so that the floret end is on the cutting board. Cut the florets away from the stalk turning the stalk as you go.
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