Root Vegetable Tian

 

One thing I love most about this time of year and the holidays is the abundance of root vegetables, which are at their freshest and finest.  Potatoes, sweet potatoes, celeriac, parsnips, rutabaga, etc. I am a root vegetable lover.

 

This simple and easy bake makes good use of a variety of root vegetables.  It makes a wonderful holiday side dish as well.  It is colourful and delicious!

 

You simply peel and thinly slice your vegetables and then blanch them for a few minutes in some lightly salted boiling water.  I like to slice my vegetables by hand, but you can use a food processor or a mandoline if you want to.

 

I really don't mind slicing them by hand.  It is the type of mindless chore that I enjoy.  I just peel and then slice them thinly, practicing mindfulness . . .  I am usually in another world entirely. I find it quite relaxing.

 

Once you have sliced and blanched them, they are simply layered in a shallow baking dish (s) with some good olive oil, seasoning and chopped parsley.  Make sure you save some of the blanching water to pour over them in the dish . . .  just enough to cover the bottom layer.  If you forget to do that you could use a good vegetable stock.

 

Once they are layered in the dish(s) you simply cover the dish loosely with two layers of buttered baking parchment and pop them into the oven and bake.  One half hour covered, and one half hour uncovered.

 

At the end of that time they will be tender and golden and soooooo tasty!  Perfect for enjoying as a delicious side dish for all of your holiday meals, be it turkey, or ham, or beef, or pork . . .  I dare say that this goes well with anything, even fish.

 

Its simple, and healthy and very adaptable also.  I have used sweet and white potatoes today, along with some celeriac (celery root) and parsnips, but you can use carrots, swede (rutabaga), onions, or any other root vegetable which you enjoy, in any combination.  This is delicious!

 

*Root Vegetable Tian*

Serves 12

Printable Recipe 

 

This is a delicious side dish for the holidays.  It tastes beautiful with all types of roasted meat.  Turkey, gammon, beef, chicken, pork. All go very well. You can vary the vegetables if you find some difficult to find.  Carrots, rutabaga/swede, turnips, etc.  All work perfectly.  This can also be very successfully halved. 

2 small sweet potatoes

2 medium white potatoes

1 small celeriac (abut 3/4 pound, celery root)

2 small parsnips

4 TBS extra virgin olive oil

3 TBS chopped fresh flat leaf parsley

fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Chopped fresh parsley to garnish 

 

 Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6.  Butter several large shallow baking dishes. Set aside.

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to the boil. 

Peel all of your vegetables and thinly slice using a mandoline, food processor or by hand. (I like to do it by hand. I find it very soothing to just stand and slice.)  Pop all of your vegetables into the pan of boiling salted water.  Boil for 2 to 3 minutes and NO longer.  Drain well (reserving about a cup and a half of the cooking water). Rinse well under cold water to halt the cooking process and drain again.


Begin layering the vegetables in the baking dishes. Making about 3 layers and sprinkling each layer with some salt and black pepper, some parsley and a drizzle of olive oil.  Pour enough of the cooking liqeuer into the bottom of each baking dish, just to cover the bottom layer of vegetables.  Cut out two pieces of baking parchment large enough to cover each casserole. (4 pieces of paper) Oil them lightly and then place two on top of each baking dish loosely.


Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes.  Remove the baking parchmet and bake for a further 30 minutes, until the vegetables are tender and golden.  Garnish with more parsley to serve

Colourful, healthy, easy to make and delicious!  What more could a person ask for?  Bon Appetit!