Eat Your Roots

The leaves are turning to reds and yellows, the temperatures are dropping, and the sun is beginning to hang lower in the sky and this can only mean one thing: It’s root vegetable season, folks.  Parsnips, carrots, rutabagas, beets, kohlrabi, jicama, onions, garlic, sweet potatoes and yams are all at their prime this time of year—and here’s a bit of knowledge to help you enjoy them to their fullest (there’s a recipe at the bottom if that’s why you’re reason)…

Picking a Root Vegetable: Unlike fruit, you want to pick out your root vegetables by choosing the firmest one—the harder, the better. If the vegetable comes with leafy green tops, make sure they are brightly colored and firm.

Storing Root Vegetables: Because they come from underground, roots like the dark. Store them covered in a plastic or paper bag in a cool, dark place like under a shelf in your pantry or in your refrigerator’s crisper—just don’t forget about ‘em.

Cooking Root Vegetables: Roots are perhaps the most versatile food—they can be boiled, steamed, pureed, sautéed, roasted, or some can even be eaten raw—jello jicama! Roasting vegetables brings out their sugars (fear not, friends, they’re still healthy), masking any natural bitterness they may have.

In addition to being delicious and wildly in-season right now, root vegetables pack a punch of great nutrition.  Roots pull their nutrition from the soil they are planted in, soaking up minerals such as bone-strong calcium, skin-soothing magnesium, and immune-ready zinc. 

Beets and kholrabi are rich in heart-healthy potassium and fiber, while turnips and rutabagas are good sources of your favorite, folate. Potatoes have more than twice the potassium of a banana and of course sweet potatoes and carrots are rich in Vitamin A—which is no mistake! Let me explain…. Vitamin A and its precursor Beta Carotene are known to improve eye health, which is increasingly important in the coming winter months as it gets darker earlier in the day.

Medley of Roasted Root Vegetables

Makes: 6 servings

Prep: 30 mins

Roast: 45 mins 400°

Ingredients:

3 pounds assorted root vegetables (carrots, parsnips, beets, fingerling or new potatoes, celery root, turnips, rutabagas and Jerusalem artichokes) peeled and cut into even-size chunks

8 shallots, halved lengthwise

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons chopped fresh herbs (thyme, parsley, dill, rosemary, and/or sage)

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Directions:

Place rack in the center of the oven. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

In a large roasting pan or baking dish, gently toss vegetables and shallots with the oil, herbs, salt and pepper. Roast, uncovered, stirring once or twice, until the vegetables are browned and fork-tender, about 45 minutes. Serve immediately, or cover and keep warm for up to 1 hour before serving.