Considering that this blog is supposed to be about eating in and dining out I’ve been doing an awful lot of dining out lately. I thought I’d post my first recipe on roasted broccoli, which I feel is quite appropriate given the name of this blog. I love roasting foods (and by this I do include putting a stew in the oven for a few hours). I really feel it brings out the flavours and turns ho-hum food into something special (ever tried boiled beets vs roasted beets?)
I actually didn’t realize until a few years ago that you actually could roast broccoli. I always steamed it, or cooked it in the microwave in a bowl with a little water. My great moment of insight was provided via the amazing Fine Cooking magazine which a friend introduced me to. This recipe has been adapted from the November 2007 edition: Armentrout, Jennifer. “An Essential Guide to Roasting Vegetables.” Fine Cooking November 2007: 53-55.
Roasted Broccoli
1 head broccoli
olive oil (I try to use as little as possible – about 2 tbsp)
salt if you want – I rarely salt my food
1. Heat up your oven to 475°F (around 230°C)
2. Cut up the broccoli quite small. If you do not do this the stems will never end up cooking. Split the florets roughly in half but don’t cut so small that you are just left with a bunch of green broccoli dust.
3. Place on a roasting tray covered with aluminium foil and place in the center of the oven.
4. Roast until the tops begin to brown around 8-10 minutes.
5. Stir
6. Roast for another 3-6 minutes until tender
Don’t panic – the tips will blacken a little. This just adds to the crunchy texture.
You could even throw this in pasta, or on pizza. I used the leftovers from this recipe in a lovely stir fry today.
Michelle Little
Writer & Photographer
This looks delicious. When people boil or steam broccoli they often do it for too long and end up losing most of the nutritional content. This is a great way to have delicious broccoli that is still full of nutrition. Way to go Roasted!