These roasted root vegetables are coated in a delicious garlic cornmeal coating that not only adds flavor, but texture to the veggies. This is helpful with the roots that don't crisp up like oven fried potatoes do.
These roasted root vegetables were inspired by the latest issue of Cooking Light, which included a feature with popular meals "made over" to have just half the calories of their more traditional counterparts. One of the dishes included a lightened up version of Steak Frites, called Beef Filets with Red Wine Sauce and Roasted Veggie Fries. While I am not much of a beef eater, the made over "steak fries" looked like something I would enjoy, so I gave them a shot, with a few minor alterations of course. The roasted root vegetables came out great and ended out being my lunch yesterday.
The original recipe called for Yukon Gold potatoes & baby carrots with a bit of the tops remaining. I had a few red potatoes, sweet potato & some long skinny carrots, on hand, so that is what I used.
The vegetables were sliced, coated in oil mixture, laid out on baking sheet, then topped with cornmeal coating mixture.
So, what makes these roasted root vegetables a lighter choice? Not only is less oil used, but carrots are considerably lower in calories than potatoes. I used sweet potatoes in my version as well. While calorically, they are similar to potatoes they are more nutrient rich, making them a healthier choice overall.
Roasted Root Vegetables with Garlic-Cornmeal Coating
Ingredients
- 2 tbs cornmeal
- 2 tbs. grated Parmesan cheese
- ½ lb. potatoes red skinned or Yukon Gold
- ½ lb. sweet potatoes
- 1 lb. carrots smaller ones
- 2 tbs. olive oil
- 1 clove of garlic crushed/minced
- ¼ tsp. dried thyme
- ¼ teaspoon Kosher salt
- ¼ tsp. fresh ground black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
- Mix cornmeal and cheese together in small container and set aside.
- Mix oil, garlic, thyme, salt & pepper in another small container and set aside, as well.
- Cut potatoes into wedges, carrots lengthwise, and sweet potatoes into similarly sized pieces.
- Put the vegetables in large mixing bowl, pour oil over them and mix to coat.
- Sprinkle ½ the cornmeal mixture over vegetables, mix to coat.
- Spread vegetables out on baking sheet, and top with remaining cornmeal mixture.
- Bake for 15 mins. Turn and bake for 7 more mins.
- Remove the sweet potatoes. Return potatoes and carrots to oven for 5 more minutes.
Nutrition
Robin says
Wow - what a great idea. Great way to incorporate veggies into dinnertime and it's something the kids would actually eat without knowing it was good for them!
Megan Jones says
These look quite yummy. What is the texture like? Do they have a crunchy or crispiness? That is my Achilles heel when it comes to french fries; I just love how crispy they are. I would love it if I could find a more nutrient rich vegetable to get that crispy, especially with less oil.
Robin says
These only get crunch from the cornmeal. Oven fries ( https://momfoodie.com/baking-fries-in-the-oven/) are crispy though 🙂
BusyWorkingMama says
YUM! These look delicious!
Crystal @ Simply Being Mommy says
Those veggies really look tasty.
feast on the cheap says
Love the added crunch of cornmeal!
April says
Made these tonight and they were excellent! A must try! Thanks Robin!!!