The Magic of Roasting

I, like many others, do a lot of oven-roasting in the winter months. Roasting meat, potatoes, and vegetables delivers deep and flavorful dishes, makes the kitchen toasty warm, and perfumes the house with delicious fragrances, what's not to love?

Lately I have been putting my oven and my toaster oven to task. [Side Bar] I grew up as a microwave and toaster person, my family did not own a toaster oven. A toaster oven did not enter my life until about 5 years ago when we moved into our house and my husband (a toaster oven person) started angling for one. We went to Williams & Sonoma and the nice lady showed us a Breville Toaster Oven. It was just before Thanksgiving which I would be hosting and she said, "You know, it's basically like having two ovens. You can roast a turkey and bake a pie at the same time." SOLD!!! I'm now a toaster oven person and will never turn back. Anyway, as I was saying, both ovens have been kept busy. Last Sunday I had a whole leg of lamb roasting away in one oven and a whole roasted cauliflower in the other. The next night, roasted chicken thighs and root vegetables, a week previous horseradish citrus salmon, roasted tofu (yes, really) and broccoli.

A few of these fabulous roasty-toasty recipes are below so you can make your kitchen smell amazing and feel delightfully cozy. Enjoy!

Whole Roasted Cauliflower with Whipped Feta

Serves 4 as a side, Serves 2 for a Main Course
*Adapted from a Bon Appetit recipe

A note about Feta. I recently discovered that the feta I’ve been buying at the grocery store is not great, it’s okay, but not the best and when it’s a key component in a recipe, I’m a believer in getting a quality product. We carry a beautiful feta at our cheese counter. The texture is creamier than the grocery store stuff and the flavor is more delicate. And it’s not expensive, a no-brainer.

Ingredients

Roasted Cauliflower
2 cups dry white wine
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup kosher salt
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 garlic cloves, peeled but left whole
1 tablespoon sugar
1 bay leaf
1 head of cauliflower, leaves removed

Whipped Feta and Assembly
8 ounces feta
3 ounces cream cheese
1/3 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons olive oil plus more for serving
Coarse sea salt (for serving)

Prep

Roasted Cauliflower
Preheat oven to 475°. Bring wine, oil, kosher salt, juice, butter, red pepper flakes, garlic, sugar, bay leaf, and 8 cups water to a boil in a large pot. Add cauliflower, reduce heat, and simmer, turning occasionally, until a knife easily inserts into center, 15-20 minutes.

Using 2 slotted spoons or a mesh spider, transfer cauliflower to a rimmed baking sheet, draining well. Roast, rotating sheet halfway through, until brown all over, 30-40 minutes.

Whipped Feta and Assembly
While cauliflower is roasting, blend feta, cream cheese, cream, and 2 tablespoons oil in a food processor until smooth; season with sea salt. Transfer whipped feta to a serving bowl and drizzle with oil.

Transfer cauliflower to a plate. Drizzle with oil; sprinkle with sea salt. Serve with whipped goat cheese.





Roasted Leg of Lamb with Green Tahini

Serves 6

Ingredients

Lamb
3-4 lb boneless leg of lamb roast (boneless leg that’s been bundled or tied into a roast)
Kosher Salt
2 cloves garlic, minced (use more or fewer according to taste)
1/4 teaspoons coarsely-ground black pepper
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2-3 stems of rosemary

Green Tahini
2 cloves garlic
Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
4 cups packed arugula
1 cup fresh mint leaves
½ cup fresh flat-leaf parsley
½ cup tahini
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Prep
Let lamb roast come to room temp. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Season the lamb liberally with kosher salt and pepper. Rub garlic into the roast and drizzle with olive oil.

Place the rosemary in the bottom of a roasting pan or cast iron skillet to act as a bed for the lamb, place the lamb roast on top of the rosemary and put in oven and cook for 15 minutes at 450 degrees. Lower temperature to 325 degrees and roast, uncovered for another 50 minutes or so, or until the roast reaches an internal temperature of 125 degrees (the temp will continue to rise as the lamb rests) Remove from oven, cover with aluminum foil, and let sit approximately 15 to 20 minutes before carving.

While lamb roasts make the green tahini sauce. Place all ingredients in a blender or food processor with about ¾ cup of warm water and pulse until smooth, thinning with more water as needed to reach the desired consistency; season with salt and more lemon juice if desired.

Roasted Salmon with Horseradish and Citrus

Serves 2

I like to serve this with some garlic and ginger sauteed bok choy and jasmine rice. Leftovers, if you have any, make great salads for lunch.

Ingredients

2 Wild Salmon fillets,(apporx 5 oz each)

kosher salt and fresh ground pepper

2 Tablespoons horseradish

zest of half a lemon and half an orange

1 teaspoon each lemon juice and fresh orange juice

Prep

Preheat oven to 450 degrees and mix horseradish, zest and juice in a bowl. 

Pat salmon dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper.

Place a medium non-stick pan over medium-high heat. Add 1 tsp. olive oil and salmon, skin side up, to hot pan. Cook undisturbed until browned, 2-3 minutes. Flip salmon and place, skin side down, on prepared baking sheet. Spread citrus-horseradish mixture over the salmon flesh and roast until salmon about 5-8 minutes.