“Plenty” of Roasted Sweet Potatoes, Parsnips, Tomatoes and Capers

I’ve used the “plenty” pun in a title before, but with significantly more disastrous (and less delicious) results. So I wanted to give this one a more positive spin since I really do love this cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi. The capers are not optional. Only use roma tomatoes (halved. I tried to spell them “romatoes” by accident, but it’s such a great abbreviation that I think I’ll keep it) instead of cherry tomatoes if you absolutely have to, and if you do, add them 40 minutes in, not 60. Don’t peel them. And don’t use canned, peeled whole roma tomatoes as I did, or you’ll end up with a soupier final product (again, as I did). Come on, though, I wasn’t going to go buy cherry tomatoes. I canned enough romas this year to get me through the Great Depression. You can skimp on the oil, but you shouldn’t or the long roasting time will turn your vegetables into unrecognizable starchy char. All the quantities of vegetables are approximate. If you toss in an extra parnsip or sweet potato, or if you don’t have rosemary, no one’s going to get angry at you. And I always encourage adding an extra head of garlic, because who doesn’t love roasted garlic? No one I want to meet, that’s for sure.

Roasted Sweet Potatoes, Parsnips, Tomatoes and Capers

4 parsnips (about 1 1/2 lbs)
4 medium red onions (or white, or cipollini, or finely chopped leek slices that aren’t over an inch long, but only if you’re stuck with no onions)
1/4 cup + 2 tbsp olive oil (or walnut or sunflower or sesame, but olive is really the best with the briny capers here)
4 fresh thyme sprigs (I freeze mine, or use some amazingly aromatic Greek dried stuff a friend brought back. Feel free to use dried if it’s all you have, but maybe use a little more, and make sure it gets coated in olive oil)
2 rosemary sprigs (or more thyme…)
1 head garlic, halved horizontally (or two…see above), skin left on
1 tsp + 1/2 salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 sweet potatoes (about 1 1/4 lbs)
30 cherry tomatoes, halved (or 5 or 6 roma tomatoes, halved)
2 tbsp lemon juice (have extra on hand because when adjusting to taste you may need a little more)
4 tbsp capers (roughly chopped if large)
1/2 tbsp maple syrup (or honey, or a tsp sugar and 1/2 tsp molasses)
1/2 tsp Dijon (a little extra is just fine)

Peel parsnips and chop into similarly sized chunks about 2 to 2 1/2 inches long. Then cut into 3 or 4 pieces lengthwise (two piece for the skinny sections). Peel onions and cut into quarters (or 6 wedges if they’re large).

Preheat oven to 375 F. Toss parsnips and onions with 1/4 cup oil, thyme, rosemary, garlic, salt and pepper. Spread in single layer on as giant a baking sheet or roasting pan as you have and bake for 20 minutes.

Trim ends of sweet potatoes but don’t peel. Cut them in half, then into 6 wedges lengthwise (4 if they’re small). Remove parsnips from oven and add sweet potatoes, tossing to combine and coat well with oil. Spread as evenly as possible and bake 40 minutes more. (If using roma tomatoes, add after 20 minutes of this 40 minute period, stirring in like sweet potatoes to coat with oil).

After those 40 minutes are up add the halved cherry tomatoes and stir. Roast ten more minutes. Vegetables should be golden and cooked through. While the tomatoes are roasting combine the remaining ingredients plus remaining 2 tbsp oil and 1/2 tsp salt, whisking to emulsify oil.

Remove roasted vegetable from oven and pour lemon-caper dressing over top. Stir to combine and taste when you can bear to put a hot sweet potato in your mouth. As it lemony enough? Is it salty enough? Make sure it’s well coated in vinaigrette and you try it with a caper, because that will change things. Serve hot. Smile. Love roasted vegetable.