Holy slippery summer! I cannot believe we are approaching mid-August already and, while I am sad that the daylight is waning ever-faster, I am loving all the fresh, local produce spilling forth into my shopping bags. Berries, tree fruit, eggplant and summer squash galore–this week alone I’ve concocted 5 varieties of freezer jam, chocolate zucchini muffins, baba ghanouj and this delicious roasty veg dish that can be served hot or cold.
This isn’t a recipe so much as an “oh my goodness, fresh vegetable sure take up a lot more room than prepared ones and I need to make room in the fridge for my husband’s beer before he gets all pouty” idea. I have no measurements, just a fantastically full belly and a delicious smelling house.
So durn cute these patty pan be! Yarrrrr!
INGREDIENTS
–enough summer squash such as zucchini, yellow zucchini and patty pans cut into 2 inch chunks to feed the people you are feeding
–enough garlic cloves, peeled and chopped very rough, to make savoury the veggies you are serving
–enough rock salt to make the veggies as flavoury as you like them flavoured
METHOD
1. Preheat oven to 450ºF. (Note: I roasted my vegetables first thing in the morning to avoid running my oven in the hot afternoon. Since this is a dish best served hot or cold, what time of day you choose to roast is your dang business and I will keep my nose out of it.)
2. Line baking sheets with parchment paper and spread veggie chunks out in an even layer (Another note: I left my patty pans whole because they are so dang adorable—see above photo–but ended up trimming and chopping them for this recipe later. I’m working on a stuffed patty pan recipe that will preserve their cuteness next week, so go ahead and chop for this one.) Sprinkle with desired amount of rock salt.
3. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until soft with minimal char. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Or not…
Getting Saucy
While roasted veggies can be delectable on their own, who can say no to sauce? Not I, said the saucy pig. This idea was inspired by the lovely dressing Christy Morgan, The Blissful Chef, developed and posted about the other day. And also by the fact that we just got back from camping and I was putting mustard on everything. For reals. And by the beautiful vertical gardens my manfriend built me.
Vertical Palate Herb Garden. Crafted with Manliness and Love
AND a Vertical Palate Flower Garden. Because I am special enough for pretty things.
And by a tasty hunch.
Herbed Mustard Sauce
INGREDIENTS (again with the no measurements! Eyeball enough to cover your veggies’ shame.)
–2 parts mustard (used a combination of sweet onion, dijon and grainy horseradish)
–1 part fresh lemon juice
–sweetener, to taste (since I used sweet onion mustard, I did not add any additional sweetener, but agave or brown rice syrup would work)
–chopped fresh herbs (I had sage, thyme, rosemary, tarragon and chives), to taste
–Nutritional Yeast (optional, but really works great if you’re serving this dish warm), to taste
METHOD
1. Whisk together mustard(s), lemon juice and sweetener, if using. Stir in fresh herbs. Fetch your roasted vegetables, remove garlic, if desired, and toss. Heat if you want to, or serve cold for a refreshing side. What did I do? I reheated mine with a handful of broccoli and tossed in some nutritional yeast flakes. Super, healthy, filling numdom.