Shawn Bird

Roasting dinner

A few years ago in Martha Stewart’s Everyday Food magazine I came across a recipe for roast zucchini. It involved dicing zucchini and onion, tossing them in olive oil and rosemary and roasting for 20 mins. The results were so tasty that it occurred to me that I could use the same method for a lot of foods, and our roast dinner routine became established.

I vary the recipe every time depending on what I have in the house, but the basics are that the food should be in 1” or 2 cm cubes, tossed in a couple tablespoons of olive or canola oil, and spread out on a cookie sheet to roast at 425 degrees for 20-25 mins. I have a convection oven, but a regular oven works as well.

I almost always use a diced onion with whatever other meats and vegetables I’m mixing and for one pan (serves 3 adults or 2 adults, 2 kids) I have about 4 cups of raw meat and/or vegetables that I toss in a mix of spices or a sauce.

Spices to mix and match: 2 garlic cloves, 1 tbsp French onion soup mix, 1 tbsp chicken or beef bouillon powder, ½ tsp of black pepper, onion powder, curry, basil, dry mustard

Sauces to consider (1/4 to 1/3 c): assorted prepared barbeque sauces, Italian or Ranch salad dressing, curry sauces

Meats: chicken breast, smokie sausage, pork or beef stewing meat, meat balls

Vegetables: onion, zucchini, potato, red pepper, green pepper, button mushrooms, carrot, parsnip, yam, turnip

I have tried broccoli and cauliflower, but the little flower tips tend to burn.

Tonight I mixed up meat balls, laid them out on the pan, tossed potatoes in BBQ sauce and poured them into the pan around the meatballs. Last week we loved diced smokies, onion, yams and carrots. Yummy!

Let me know what you try and how it turns out!