roasted winter vegetables with fresh thyme

You know what one of the cons of having a food blog is? Having the excuse to constantly obsess over food. See... I'm already obsessed with food. Cooking it, eating it, writing about it, sharing it with others. I'm a boredom snacker. I eat my feelings. I snack the whole time I'm cooking. It's terrible.

7 lbs of terrible since I started this blogging business. That wouldn't be a problem if I were a 6 foot amazon, but I'm not. I'm a teeny little person at 5 foot 2 inches and I'm nursing a food baby that I didn't have before.

So yesterday, I whipped out the old DVD - Crunch Fitness Super Slim Down, hosted by the excellent Ellen Barrett who peppers her workouts with inspiration such as "You can do it! Really work it! Those abs are gonna be buff! Try not to use your arms at all!" I did it and today I'm in agony.

I also took the opportunity to cook a little healthier, and made this winter veggie medley as part of my dinner. I've been using this combination of veg for years - there's just something about squash, beets and carrots... they absolutely sing together. The earthy flavours are so complimentary and the colours will knock your socks off.

This is one of my recipes without a recipe. There's no real way to screw this one up (believe me, if there was, I'd have found a way). You can use whatever ratio of vegetables you want. You'll want to add the oil, thyme and salt to your taste. You can make as much or as little as you want.

I used a delicata squash and therefore didn't have to peel it. That was a blessing. Also, as the skins of my carrots were very thin (they were bunch carrots), I didn't peel those either. I really enjoy the flavour of carrots and so much of that is the skin. Beets, of course, must be peeled. I boil them beforehand to make this easier (and a little less messy!)

roasted winter vegetables with fresh thyme

squash
beets
carrots
olive oil
coarse salt
fresh thyme

Preheat your oven to 375ºF.

Boil your beets for approximately 15 minutes, then cool under cold water, peel and chop into 1 to 1 1/2 inch pieces. Chop the squash and carrots to similar size, then toss together with drizzled olive oil, coarse salt and fresh thyme.

Spread your veg on a foil lined baking sheet in a single layer. Roast for approximately 45 minutes, tossing once halfway through, or until soft and darkened in places for that awesome toasty flavour.

Garnish with some more fresh thyme sprigs, cause they look pretty.