Roasted Root Vegetables with Honey, Rosemary & Sage

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This fall-inspired take on traditional glazed carrots will have your whole family asking for a second helping of their vegetables. Coating your root vegetables with a subtly-sweet and buttery glaze, speckled with flakes of freshly chopped sage and rosemary will allow you to showcase some of the best culinary aspects of fall and get this colder-weather season kicked off the right way.

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We're already getting in the holiday spirit over here and this recipe is serving us all the holiday vibes!

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A Note About Honey

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Honey? Yes, honey! What makes this recipe so good and stand out is the honey that we add. It gives it a nice, balanced sweetness.

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We love using honey because it really an amazing ingredient, especially when produced in small batches from happy bees in a well taken care of hive! It can be some of the most subtly-complex sweet concoctions you will ever taste. Similar to wine, honey is an expression of the land in which it was produced. The surrounding fields, trees, herbs, berries, and plants all have their effect on the flavor of the honey. As the bees venture out to pollinate the surrounding vegetation, they track those flavors back to the hive, and as a result, to the honey.

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Don’t believe me? Next time you are at your local farmer’s market, pick up a jar of honey and give it a try. If you are able to, give it a try right there and then ask where the farmer has the hive located on their farm and what vegetation is near. A moderately-well trained palate can usually pick up on a few flavor notes such as clover, herbs, citrus or blossoms. At the very least, your palate will know there is a lot going on!

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Ingredients for Roasted Root Vegetables with Honey, Romsemary and Sage

• Root Vegetables: The key here is not as much what vegetables you use but how you cut them. For our recipe I used carrots, parsnip, celery root and rutabaga but you can use whichever root vegetables you want, or even a firm squash such as butternut or acorn. When preparing the vegetables for roasting, be sure that the vegetables have a similar firmness, and that you cut them all a similar size. If you try to pair a vegetable such as a zucchini or summer squash with a firm vegetable like a carrot or parsnip, by the time the carrot is tender, the zucchini and squash will be mush. That is also why it is important to make sure everything is cut to a similar size. If all the vegetables are a similar size, they will cook at the same rate and will all cook evenly.
• Sweetener: I like to use honey to give the vegetables a nice complementary sweetness. While you could also use other sweeteners with a similar thickness such as maple syrup, sorghum syrup, or agave, I prefer honey because of the additional depth of flavor the honey adds.
• Butter: I add butter to give the glaze some body and balance the sweetness with richness. While you don't have to add the butter, I would not recommend replacing it with any oils otherwise the glaze will not be able to form a stable emulsion and you will have a separated-oily glaze, similar to a vinaigrette before you shake it.
• Herbs: When the weather starts to cool down and the lighter herbs like basil and dill start to die and your body starts to naturally crave heartier foods such as stews and bakes, I like to switch over to the herbs that not only survive outside in the colder weather, but also have bolder flavors that stand up to heartier dishes. My three most commonly used fall herbs are sage, rosemary and thyme. I usually let thyme sit this recipe out so that the other herbs can shine but you can certainly add it or even use it exclusively if you’d like.

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Tips for Making the Best Root Vegetables

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Not only is this recipe simple to make, but once you have mastered the technique, you can easily make countless variations and put your own spin on it. The recipe really is very easy. Essentially, all you are doing is:

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1. Cutting your vegetables: making sure to cut them all to a similar size
2. Roasting your vegetables: cooking them until they are almost fully cooked.
3. Glazing your vegetables: adding the butter, honey and herbs and finish cooking.

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It is that easy! The heat from the oven will create the glaze so all you will have to do is toss the vegetables to coat them and then adjust the seasoning to taste.

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Our only and best tip we can give you is:

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• Don’t be afraid to vary the temperature and cooking time when roasting the vegetables: Not all ovens work exactly the same so while we add a recommended time and temperature for roasting the vegetables, don’t hesitate to adjust according to the vegetables. After the initial 30 minutes of roasting are finished, you want the vegetables to have a nice golden color and be cooked about 90 % of the way, or have just a little bit of a crunch in the center. If they seem like they are not cooked enough after 30 minutes, let them go for another 10 minutes before adding the rest of the ingredients.

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If you're starting to think about holiday recipes, you need to add this one to your menu! And if your just looking for a straight up good vegetable side dish, we got you!

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Cheers and eat well!