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Warmer weather makes me crave all the fresh fruits and vegetables. Harry & David's Baby Vegetable Basket was the exact delivery I needed to get me excited for a new season.
Since baby vegetables have a more mild taste and texture than their grown-up counterparts, you'll want to treat them "gently." They don't need long cooking times or an excess amount of seasoning to make them palatable. In fact many of them are delicious (and not to mention very cute) just the way they are.
Roasting the vegetables
Roasting the baby vegetables showcases all the flavor of these seasonal veggies with very minimal preparation. I simply seasoned them lightly, then roasted them in the oven until they were crisp-tender. The key is to separate the vegetables into two groups: those that take longer to cook, and those that cook quickly.
This way you don't need to constantly babysit the baking sheets, or spend hours roasting the vegetables in batches. There are guidelines in the recipe below, but depending on seasonal availability, you may find yourself with a vegetable not listed here. In general, larger, firmer vegetables, like root vegetables (carrots, beets, potatoes) will take longer to roast than the smaller, softer vegetables (zucchini).
Creating the yogurt dips
To add to your garden variety, make a yogurt based dip — I made two, and they're uber-easy to make. You'll just mix up a single batch of the base, then split it in half before adding the remaining ingredients.
To one, add a mix of fresh herbs, which makes for a bright, light-tasting dip. To the second, add ground turmeric, ginger, and honey for a more spicy variation with some zing.
Roasting vegetables is a great way to start experimenting with cooking more plant-based recipes. Serving them with two dips provides even more layers of flavor and color to the spread. The final dish is bright, fun, and perfect for sharing at your next party or bringing on a picnic. And if you pair it with more appetizers like a charcuterie board, you might not even need to cook dinner.
- For the Yogurt Dips:
- 2 cups full fat Greek yogurt
- 4 tbs extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 tbs lemon juice (fresh-squeezed )
- 2 garlic cloves (peeled and minced)
- 1 cup grated cucumber
- 3 tbs fresh dill (finely chopped)
- 2 tbs fresh parsley (finely chopped)
- 1 tbs fresh cilantro (finely chopped)
- 1 tbs fresh mint (finely chopped)
- 2 tbs honey
- 1 tbs fresh ginger (peeled and minced)
- 1-1 tsp ground turmeric
- For the Roasted Baby Vegetables:
- Harry & David Baby Vegetable Basket
- Olive oil (the spray kind works best here)
- Salt
- Black pepper
- To make the yogurt dips:
- Combine the yogurt, olive oil, lemon juice, and garlic in a medium bowl.
- Roll the grated cucumber up into a paper towel and squeeze it firmly over your sink to remove the excess moisture.
- Add the cucumber to the bowl with the other ingredients and stir to combine. Divide this base mixture into two smaller bowls.
- To one bowl add the chopped dill, parsley, cilantro, and mint. Stir to combine.
- To the second bowl, add the honey, ginger, and turmeric. Stir to combine.
- Cover both yogurt dips and refrigerate them until you're ready to use them.
- To prepare the vegetables:
- Start by pre-heating your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Line two large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.
- For the first baking sheet:
- Prepare the carrots, beets, potatoes, onions, and artichokes, then spread them across the baking sheet.
- Peel and wash the carrots and beets.
- Trim off and discard any ends that are excessively woody. If any of the carrots or beets are significantly larger than the others, slice them in half lengthwise.
- Scrub the potatoes. There is no need to peel them.
- Remove the skin from the pearl onions. You can leave the root end intact.
- Trim off the woody part of the stem from the artichokes. Remove and discard the outermost leaves. Then slice the artichokes in half (or quarters if they are large) lengthwise.
- For the second baking sheet:
- Prepare the zucchini, squash, green beans, radishes, and brussels sprouts, then spread them across the baking sheet.
- Wash the zucchini, and trim off and discard any excessively woody ends.
- Wash the squash and green beans.
- Scrub the radishes.
- Trim off any woody parts from the brussels sprout stems and remove any outer leaves that may be wilted.
- To prepare the vegetables for cooking:
- Lightly coat all the vegetables with olive oil and sprinkle them with salt and black pepper.
- Place the baking sheets in your pre-heated oven. The vegetables on the first baking sheet will be done after 25-30 minutes.
- The vegetables on the second baking sheet will be done after 10-15 minutes. Check them halfway through the roasting time and turn/toss them gently as necessary.
- Divide the roasted baby vegetables between serving platters.
- Serve with the two yogurt dips.
AUTHOR
Liz is the creator and owner of Floating Kitchen, a recipe and photography website where she shares both sweet and savory dishes. She loves to create recipes based on seasonal inspiration from the fruits and vegetables that grow at her family's produce farm. When she's not in her kitchen, she loves walking the nearby beaches and going out for ice cream!
