Roasted Autumn Root Vegetables

Serves 6-8
Vegetarian / Vegan

This rustic side dish is perfect to serve in the autumn and winter months, and especially for holiday get-togethers. Even if you live in the Arizona desert (like I used to), the smells of autumn root vegetables, warm spices, and butter will remind you of a crisp fall day picking apples in the country.

4-5 medium potatoes (I like Yukon Gold, but use whatever you have lying around)
2 turnips
3 large carrots
2 sweet potatoes
A bunch of Brussels sprouts
1 head of garlic, chopped
olive oil
salt & pepper
a few tablespoons of butter / soy margarine if you are vegan
dried rosemary
cinnamon
nutmeg
pecans or walnuts (optional)

Preheat your oven to 400°. Also, take out your butter so it begins to warm up to room temperature.

Chop the potatoes, turnips, carrots, and sweet potatoes into chunks. Make sure they are cut into relatively similar sizes so everything cooks at the same time. Depending on the size of the Brussels sprouts, leave them whole or slice them in half.

Toss the chunks of vegetables together in a large bowl with the garlic cloves, some olive oil, a bunch of salt & pepper, and a bunch of rosemary. Put everything into the oven on a greased or foil-lined baking sheet until the veggies are tender and golden brown (about 40 minutes).

When the veggies are tender, take them out of the oven and put them into a large bowl. While they are still hot, add a few tablespoons of butter and mix until it melts.

Add some cinnamon and some nutmeg, and even some more rosemary, salt, and pepper if you want more flavor.

If you want to make it extra special, put a few tablespoons of butter in a small sauté pan. Add some chopped walnuts or pecans, and fry them for a minute or so. Top the veggies with the nuts and a little drizzle of the extra melted butter.

For a different twist on this recipe, omit the Brussels sprouts, and mash all of the roasted root veggies together with a little melted butter for a beautiful autumn side dish.