4 Roast Some Roots, Cooking for Good Times

Beets have pretty much always been on the menu at avec, mostly because they’re accessible year-round, and delicious. In the spring, you’re just pulling ’em from the ground, and they’re on the smaller side; earthy and sweet. Then by fall, they’re ready for cold storage to get you through the winter, and that’s when you see the softball-size guys that don’t really have the same sugary quality that their younger counterparts do. Enter our classic beet-roasting method, which has been part of my personal rotation for years because it rounds out the natural bitter flavor of beets. We’ve modified it a bit so it also suits sweet potatoes and turnips—both excellent, versatile roots. First we roast the vegetables to concentrate their sweetness, and then we marinate them to bring the acidity back and balance out that sweetness. When they’re warm out of the oven, they’re like little sponges, soaking up all that flavor. And then you can just toss them with things like burrata and charred kale or strawberries, ricotta, and pistachios to make a really substantial, balanced dish.

A lot of the big techniques in this book are pretty protein-forward, but that’s not necessarily the way I cook all the time. When you’re working your way through a dinner, you want more vegetables and vegetable-based mains on the table, not just a piece of meat. This method is going to give you the kinds of dishes to get you there.

Go for Chardonnays that are low in the oak department (that is, White Burgundy / Chablis). Pinot Noir and lighter rustic reds like Grenache, young Bandol, or Corsican Nielluccio would be great with these recipes, as would some of the Spanish natural (“natty”) reds that are low in alcohol and a little on the funky side. Or a slightly sweeter brown ale. (Or rosé.)

here’s how

PREP, ROAST, AND MARINATE ROOT VEGETABLES

This technique is perfect when you’re cooking for friends and family because it takes way less time than roasting the vegetables whole—thirty to forty minutes tops—and they can be roasted ahead, which just means they spend more time hanging out in their tasty marinade in the fridge. Then they’re ready to be tossed back in the pan to be crisped up again—or not. They’re delicious at room temperature, or even served cold. It’s the kind of thing you want to have in your back pocket.

MAKES 6 SERVINGS

2 pounds beets, sweet potatoes, or turnips (any color, golf ball– to baseball-size)

¼ cup rice bran oil, grapeseed oil, or olive oil*

1 tablespoon kosher salt

2 teaspoons sugar or honey

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 sprigs thyme

2 sprigs rosemary

Juice of 1 orange or lemon, or 2 tablespoons red, champagne, or cider vinegar

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

½ teaspoon crushed red chile flakes

*Save the extra-virgin for something else.

Prep

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Depending on the size and type of the root, peel it or not. Peel the dirty, gnarly beets. Sweet potato skins soften up when roasting, so leave those on. For thinner-skinned turnips, a good scrubbing will do.

Cut the roots into chunks; I like them about 1 inch thick and 2 inches long. Cut the round roots through the equator and chunk them up from there. For sweet potatoes, cut them in half lengthwise, then again lengthwise, and then into 2-inch pieces. If you can find baby sweet potatoes, just cut those in half. There’s no wrong way to do this; just keep all of your vegetables similar in size and shape so they cook evenly.

Roast

Preheat an ovenproof sauté pan large enough to hold the root vegetables in one layer over medium-high heat. Add the rice bran, grapeseed, or olive oil and continue heating until the oil shimmers and is thinking about smoking. Carefully add the roots and let them caramelize on one side, 2 to 3 minutes. Check to make sure they’re not burning—lower the heat if they’re scorching in some spots. Give the roots a toss in the pan (tongs work, too) and season with the salt, sugar, and pepper. Add the thyme and rosemary and transfer the pan to the oven.

Cook until the vegetables are lightly browned and tender. Start checking with the tip of a sharp knife after 6 minutes and continue to check every 5 minutes. They’re done when they’re easily pierced all the way through. The beets will cook in about 30 minutes, the turnips in 10 minutes or less, and the sweet potatoes in 20 minutes. This will depend on the age, variety, and cut of the vegetable, so use your senses (including common sense) and check often.

Marinate

Spoon the roasted vegetables into a large bowl. Discard the herb stems. Add the orange juice or vinegar, extra-virgin olive oil, and chile flakes. Toss until well coated.

Serve

You can serve at this point, or store in the fridge for up to 5 days.

ROASTED AND MARINATED BEETS WITH BURRATA, CHARRED KALE, AND HAZELNUT VINAIGRETTE

This is a really, really exceptional dish that always blows people’s minds. It speaks exactly to that incredible thing that happens after you’ve marinated root vegetables and then charred them, and this time we’re adding some Tuscan kale to the marinade and charring it in the cast-iron skillet along with the roots. Then, because I’m a nut-vinaigrette freak, everything gets tossed in a hazelnut vinaigrette. Nut oils have that same combination of earthy and sweet as root vegetables, which makes them the dream team, and then the oil has all that extra fat and richness that’s just delicious. I top this off with burrata, which might seem like a cop-out because adding burrata to things is like adding caviar—it’s cheating a little bit—but the creaminess against the roasted veg is just out of this world. And it doesn’t necessarily need the ooze factor, so you could use fresh mozzarella instead. Could you just add the cheese to the roasted roots along with some marinated kale? Yeah. Would it be unique? Yeah. But the whole extra step of searing the beets and kale and pouring them right from the pan onto a platter? Next level.

If you’ve already roasted and marinated the beets, you could marinate the kale on its own, then sear everything together.

Marinated Kale

¼ cup grated Pecorino or Parmigiano cheese

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Zest and juice of 1 lemon

1 clove garlic, minced

½ teaspoon honey

½ teaspoon kosher salt

¼ teaspoon crushed red chile flakes

Freshly ground black pepper

1 large bunch black Tuscan kale, ribs remove, coarsely chopped

Hazelnut Vinaigrette

Heaping ¼ cup hazelnuts, toasted in a skillet over medium heat until fragrant and then finely ground

3 tablespoons hazelnut oil

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon finely chopped shallot

1 teaspoon minced thyme leaves

½ teaspoon honey

¼ teaspoon kosher salt

3 cranks black pepper

Roasted and marinated beets (see this page)

2 balls burrata or fresh mozzarella cheese, torn into rough chunks

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

½ cup coarsely chopped toasted hazelnuts

MARINATE THE KALE In a large bowl, combine the cheese, olive oil, lemon zest and juice, garlic, honey, salt, chile flakes, and pepper. Add the kale and toss to combine—really get in there and work the kale with your hands; this isn’t a gentle massage. Set the kale aside to marinate at room temperature for 2 hours or in the fridge overnight. Alternatively, you could toss the kale in with the just-roasted, marinating beets along with the cheese, olive oil, et al., and let the mixture sit at room temperature for 2 hours or in the fridge overnight. They’ll marinate just the same.

MAKE THE VINAIGRETTE Combine the hazelnuts, hazelnut oil, vinegar, shallot, thyme, honey, salt, and pepper in a small jar with a tight-fitting lid and shake it until the dressing comes together. Set aside until ready to serve, or store in the fridge for up to 5 days.

CHAR THE KALE AND BEETS Preheat a large cast-iron pan over high heat for 5 minutes. When the pan looks very hot (you see little wisps of smoke), add the marinated beets and char on one side for 1 minute, just long enough to get some char. Remove the beets from the pan and add the kale, again charring for 1 minute. You are looking to just heat the kale, not fully cook it. You also could do this over the high heat of a grill. Remove the pan from the heat.

PUT IT TOGETHER AND SERVE Spread the cheese over a large platter. Season it a bit with salt and pepper. Scatter the charred kale and beets over the cheese, douse with the hazelnut vinaigrette, and finish with the chopped hazelnuts.

ROASTED AND MARINATED ROOTS WITH SMOKY YOGURT, CRISP LENTILS, AND DILL VINAIGRETTE

Don’t let “smoky yogurt” make you think I’ve gone all cheffy on you. Yeah, in the restaurant the yogurt is actually smoked, but then I realized there’s some great-quality smoked sea salts out there that would also give you that effect (and you have to season the yogurt with salt anyway, so there you go). Liquid smoke also came up as a way to make this recipe more home cook–friendly, and though I dismissed it as a hack at first, I don’t believe the finest of palates could tell the difference between the real thing and the bottled thing. As for the crispy lentils, that idea came from Jonathon Sawyer, the amazing chef and wild man from Cleveland. He’s a total process guy, and every time I talk to him he’s got some technique he’s doing that’s really cool and delicious. He taught me that one way to get incredibly crispy lentils is to cook them until they’re tender, Cryovac them with a lot of olive oil and salt, and let them cure for a month before frying them. The final product is really good, but sorry, Johnny. Perry soaks them overnight and fries them in a skillet, and they’re just about as good. Perfect for all your crunchy-bit needs, or even on their own by the handful as a snack. So you got your yogurt, you got your roots, you got your chicories drizzled with dill vinaigrette, and then there’s the smoky yogurt and crispy lentils over the top. It’s a pretty solid deal.

Crisp Lentils

½ cup beluga or French lentils, soaked with water to cover by 2 inches overnight at room temperature*

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil

½ teaspoon kosher salt

Pinch of cayenne pepper

Smoky Yogurt

1 cup plain Greek yogurt

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon crushed red chile flakes

1 teaspoon smoked sea salt, or a couple drops of liquid smoke, or ½ teaspoon kosher salt

1 tablespoon water

Dill Vinaigrette

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 small shallot, finely minced

2 tablespoons chopped dill leaves

Zest and juice of 1 lime

1 teaspoon brown sugar

½ teaspoon kosher salt

¼ teaspoon finely grated jalapeño chile

¼ teaspoon crushed red chile flakes

Roasted and marinated root vegetables (see this page)

1 small head chicory, such as radicchio, Castelfranco, or endive, washed, trimmed, and separated into individual leaves

1 Fuji, Granny Smith, or other crisp apple, cored and thinly sliced

2 tablespoons chopped dill leaves

*It’s really important to soak the lentils; you will break your teeth trying to eat fried, unsoaked lentils. The day before you cook, soak the lentils. Soak the lentils. Soak the lentils. Don’t forget to soak the lentils.

MAKE THE CRISPY LENTILS Drain the lentils well, shaking off as much excess water as you can. Heat the oil in a medium sauté pan over medium high-heat until it shimmers and looks like it could almost smoke. Carefully add the lentils (they might sputter a bit) and cook until crisp, about 2 minutes, stirring often so they don’t stick to the bottom. Drain off as much oil from the pan as you can and transfer the lentils to a paper towel–lined plate. Season with the kosher salt and cayenne while still warm. Set aside until ready to serve or let cool completely and store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.

MAKE THE SMOKY YOGURT In a small bowl, combine the yogurt, oil, vinegar, chile flakes, smoked salt, and water. Whisk until well combined. Set aside until ready to serve or store in the fridge for up to 5 days.

MAKE THE DILL VINAIGRETTE Combine the oil, shallot, dill leaves, lime zest and juice, the brown sugar, kosher salt, jalapeño, and chile flakes in a small jar with a tight-fitting lid. Shake it until it all comes together. Set aside until ready to use or store in the fridge for up to 2 days (the dill gets a little funky if it sits longer than that).

PUT IT TOGETHER AND SERVE Spread the yogurt over a serving plate. Scatter the root vegetables over the yogurt and tuck in the chicory leaves and apple slices. Spoon the vinaigrette over and top with fried lentils and the chopped dill.

As a young cook, I fell in love with the combination of orange and olive—black or green. It’s sort of a North African combination and it was really striking to me because they’re so seemingly opposite but taste so good together. The orange is super-juicy, and then you have the salty olives—which all go really well with root vegetables, especially in the wintertime when there’s not much else out there that’s succulent and fresh-tasting. We also threw in some olive brine here because one of my culinary mentors, Ken Minami, taught me how to cook with it—in vinaigrettes or tossing things in it before dehydrating them. It’s just a great super-secret ingredient to save. Feta-wise, I always prefer the creamy Corsican variety. But the stuff sitting in water at the deli is also fine.

Orange-Cumin Vinaigrette

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 small shallot, finely minced

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed orange juice

1 tablespoon sherry vinegar

½ teaspoon ground cumin

½ teaspoon kosher salt

¼ teaspoon crushed red chile flakes

1 tablespoon olive brine

Roasted and marinated root vegetables (see this page)

2 navel oranges, peeled and cut into approximately ¾-inch chunks

½ cup pitted black olives*

2 small heads of Belgian endive or coralline chicory, trimmed and separated into leaves

½ small red onion, sliced as thinly as you can

Kosher salt

1 small bunch dill, fronds only

4 ounces crumbled feta cheese

*Bonus points for Moroccan oil-cured olives, but Kalamata or Niçoise also work well.

MAKE THE VINAIGRETTE Combine the oil, shallot, orange juice, vinegar, cumin, salt, chile flakes, and olive brine in a small jar with a tight-fitting lid and shake until it all comes together. Set aside until ready to serve or store in the fridge for up to 3 days.

PUT IT TOGETHER AND SERVE In a large bowl, combine the root vegetables, oranges, olives, endive, and onion. Add the vinaigrette and toss well. Taste for seasoning—it might need a bit of salt, but remember that the feta will add some saltiness. Top with the dill and crumbled feta and serve.

ROASTED AND MARINATED ROOT VEGETABLES WITH PERSIMMONS AND WALNUT-ANCHOVY VINAIGRETTE

Here’s another nut vinaigrette to add that rich unctuousness to the roots, and anchovies to give a salty, savory component. You wouldn’t necessarily taste this and think it’s fishy; the anchovy just kind of makes everything else taste better. There are two kinds of persimmons you’ll usually see at the market or store—fuyus and hachiyas. You want the fuyus, which can be served crisp, almost like apples. (Hachiyas should feel like liquid in a plastic bag before you eat them, otherwise they’re super tannic and basically the worst thing ever—either way, not what you’re going for.) Sometimes the skins are tender, and sometimes you want to slice them off. Take a bite and if the skin is just short of shoe leather, cut it off.

Walnut-Anchovy Vinaigrette

½ cup walnuts

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil

4 anchovies

1 clove garlic, peeled

2 tablespoons white wine vinegar

Zest and juice of 1 lemon

Kosher salt

Roasted and marinated root vegetables (see this page)

2 fuyu (not hachiya) persimmons, cut into ¼-inch wedges*

1 small head frisée or escarole, cleaned and separated into leaves

½ small red onion, sliced as thinly as you can

2 ounces Parmigiano or other hard cheese, such as Pecorino or aged Gouda

*Pears or figs would work here, too, if you can’t find fuyu persimmons.

MAKE THE VINAIGRETTE In a food processor, combine the walnuts, oil, anchovies, and garlic and process until smooth. Add the vinegar and lemon juice and zest and pulse two times. Taste for seasoning—if your anchovies are very salty, you won’t need any additional salt. Otherwise, add a pinch or so, to your liking. Set aside until ready to use or store in the fridge for up to 5 days.

PUT IT TOGETHER AND SERVE Scatter the root vegetables, persimmons, frisée, and onion on a platter. Spoon the vinaigrette over the mixture. Using a vegetable peeler, shave the cheese over the platter, and serve.

ROASTED AND MARINATED ROOT VEGETABLES WITH STRAWBERRIES, RICOTTA, AND PISTACHIOS

People usually think of roasted root vegetables in winter, but this is a great way to use what’s coming up in the spring. Small turnips—aka Tokyo turnips—start popping up right around the time you get strawberries. The tender, sweet golf ball–size beets are at the market, too; and you can pretty much always find great Garnet yams.

Simple Red Wine–Honey Vinaigrette

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 small shallot, finely minced

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

½ teaspoon honey

½ teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup fresh whole-milk ricotta cheese

½ teaspoon kosher salt

6 cranks black pepper

Roasted and marinated root vegetables (see this page)

1 cup quartered strawberries

2 cups arugula

¼ cup pistachios, coarsely chopped

MAKE THE VINAIGRETTE Combine the oil, shallot, vinegar, honey, and salt in a small jar with a tight-fitting lid and shake until it all comes together. Set aside until ready to serve or store in the fridge for up to 3 days.

PUT IT TOGETHER AND SERVE In a small bowl, mix together the ricotta, salt, and pepper. Stir until smooth and creamy. Schmear the ricotta over a platter. Scatter the root vegetables, strawberries, and arugula over the top. Drizzle with the vinaigrette, scatter the pistachios over the top, and serve.