TAKE it 2 the TABLE: Roasted Vegetables & Bountiful Pizza-- 2 ½ dinners for the work of 1

(2 Main Dishes, 1+ Side)

(Serves a family of 4)

There’s no tastier way to experience the range of the harvest than mixed roasted vegetables!  You can substitute fairly freely.  I’ll share the “winter root vegetable” version of this dish later – it’s very different, but just as yummy.

ROASTED VEGETABLE ROTINI (or Quinoa) plus BROTH for LATER*

4 Eggplants**

            A Generous Splash of Olive Oil

            A little bit of Salt

½ a Head of Garlic

1 Lemon

3 Zucchini

3 Sweet Peppers

2 Onions

1 Head of Broccoli

1 Bunch of Cherry Tomatoes

Optionally: 1 Bunch of Asparagus or a mix of your favorite Mushrooms

1 Jar/Can of Artichoke Hearts – not in oil (OR Olives OR Capers)

1 Box of “Plus”*** Pasta (or 2 cups of Quinoa)

Crushed Red Pepper or Black Pepper to taste

BOUNTIFUL PIZZA

Most of the Leftover Roasted Vegetables

2 Packages of “Rustic Crust”***** (Tuscan Six Grain) Pizza Crusts (OR Homemade Crusts OR Bertucci’s Balls of Whole Wheat Dough)

***** The Rustic Crust brand both has much better ingredients than Boboli & costs much less, (and they’re made in NH)!

Unsweetened Tomato Sauce

Oregano to taste

1 Can of Chick Peas

BRUSCHETTA APPETIZER, SIDE or SNACK

The Last of the Roasted Veggies

Optionally: Several Slices of Chewy, Hardy, Whole Grain Bread

MEAL ONE

1.  Preheat the oven to 480 degrees Fahrenheit, & start a pot of water boiling.

2.  Wash all of the Vegetables*.

* Save all of the cuttings and trimmings of all of the veggies for the broth.

3.  Prepare & cook the eggplant.

Cut the eggplant into 1 inch cubes.

Toss with a generous swirl of olive oil & salt lightly.

Spread in a single layer on a large sprayed cookie sheet and bake at 450 to 500 degrees Fahrenheit for 45 minutes to an hour.  (I do 48 minutes at 480 degrees, or I use convection bake to speed things up quite a bit.)

While that cooks…

** If you think you don’t like eggplant, withhold judgment until you have tried it roasted until its dry on the outside and creamy on the inside.

4.  Peel the garlic & quarter the lemon and set aside.

5.  Prepare and cook the other Veggies.

Cut all of the veggies* including the artichoke hearts, but excluding the cherry tomatoes into large chunky pieces; (they shrink as they cook).

Mix all of the cut veggies together along with the whole tomatoes & whole garlic cloves.

Lightly squeeze the lemon over the mixture; then add the squeezed quarters to the mix.

Spread the mixture in a single layer on two well oiled, large cookie sheets; season with crushed red or freshly ground black pepper, and bake at 400 to 420 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 to 40 minutes.

While that cooks…

6.  Take all of the cuttings and trimmings from all of the veggies (excepting the crisp papery part of the onion) and boil them in the water for 10 minutes then simmer about an hour.

I do this in a “pasta” pot so it is easy to lift the solids out at the end.  Press the liquid out of them with the back of a large spoon or ladle, or with a potato masher before discarding them.

You can add herbs and spices at this point or wait until you use the broth and tailor the flavor to that dish.

Use the broth later in the week or freeze for more than a season.

7.  Prepare the Quinoa as you would rice, but only cook 12 minutes after reducing heat to low OR cook the “plus”*** pasta.

*** Plus pasta is made, at least partially, from legume flour increasing its protein & fiber content a bit while decreasing its simple carbohydrates.  I have two friends with particularly picky eaters in their family (in one case the children, in the other the husband) who won’t touch whole wheat pasta, but who eat this.  Of course, if you’re trying something new anyway, try the quinoa for a change.

8.  Mix one of the two cookie sheets of veggies with half the cookie sheet of eggplant and an equal or lesser volume of pasta or quinoa.  (The bowl should contain more vegetables than pasta or grain.)

Serve with a romaine salad.

MEAL TWO (preferably with a day between)

1.  Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.  While it is heating…

2.  Prep the pizzas

Spread sauce on both pizza crusts and sprinkle them with oregano.

Thickly spread leftover roasted veggies on the pizzas

Bake them for 10 minutes.

While they cook…

3.  Thoroughly rinse the canned chickpeas under warm water.  Toss them with the remainder of the romaine salad.

MEAL THREE (preferably with a day between)

1.  Toast some hardy, healthy whole grain bread topped with the rest of the roasted vegetables.  Serve this with a quick cooking soup or other main dish.

NOTES:

The veggie broth can be used in the future in place of water in most any recipe to add flavor.  It can also be used to keep things from sticking to the bottom of a pan.

A great way to thicken soup (and hide more healthy ingredients inside) is to puree  beans with some of the broth and final ingredients, and stir that mixture back into the pot.

The mixed vegetables do NOT get tossed with or coated in oil.  Just oil the pan to keep them from sticking.

No, cheese was not forgotten on the ingredient list.  You won’t miss it on this pizza!

You may notice that the eggplant roasts at a higher temp than the other veggies.  As long as it starts out nice and hot, you can turn it down to 440ish when the second wave of veggies goes in.  Turn the oven down again when the eggplant comes out.

Happy Eating.