#roasting

#roasting

Initially, it's their voluptuous contours that captivate. The long, slender necks and arched stems of Bosc pears, the round, silhouette of Comice. The gentle curves of the bell-shaped Bartlett. In the marketplace most often, they are as hard as boulders. They feel more like baseballs than fruit. Not a whisper of sublime sweetness. Not a whiffet of sensuous aroma. They are picked mature but before ripened, then kept in controlled-atmosphere storage. Tree-ripened pears get mushy because they ripen from the inside out.

Turnips are one of the vegetables I buy most often in the fall. I can never resist them at the farmers market-bright white, pink, or tinged with purple, with lush green tops attached. They often look more humble in the grocery store, but they're still worth reaching for. Turnips have a lightly sweet, peppery flavor with delicious nutty, mustardy undertones. Why not add them to your root vegetable rotation?

Despite the enduring symbolic reason that chestnuts are eaten on Christmas, there's no reason to limit your enjoyment of them to December alone. Like other types of nuts, chestnuts' nutritional benefits are enough to make you work them into your weekly meals. They're low in calories and great sources of fiber and protein. What makes them different from their counterparts, however, is their antioxidant-rich makeup. Chestnuts have a high amount of vitamin C, as well as gallic and ellagic acid.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Place the butternut squash on the pan and drizzle and rub each half with just enough olive oil to lightly coat the squash on the inside. Sprinkle it with salt and pepper. Turn the squash face down and roast until it is tender and completely cooked through, about 40 to 50 minutes. Set the squash aside until it's cool enough to handle.

Thankfully, roasting solves both of these problems, intensifying the cruciferous vegetable's flavors and enhancing its texture with a delightful crunch. But if you are looking to turn an already irresistible side dish into a stand-out weeknight staple, try coating your broccoli in cornstarch before roasting to make it extra crispy. You might only associate cornstarch with thickening sauces or soups, but it also works great for crisping up just about any roasted vegetable.

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links. If you're a lover of ketchup, it might come as a surprise to you that tomatoes weren't always a defining ingredient. While most brands of ketchup you see on the shelf are a blend of tomatoes, vinegar, and a sweetener, ketchup doesn't have to stick to the conventional modern formula. Beet ketchup is a wonderfully tasty alternative to tomato ketchup that's very easy to make, not to mention nightshade-free.

In fact, sometimes I just opt for the fastest method ( boiling corn in a pot of seasoned water) so I can bite into a crunchy, sweet and salty ear of corn as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, cooking corn on the stovetop, especially when using frozen corn, increases the risk of soggy corn on the cob that isn't very flavorful.

Remove some skins from the chickpeas before baking for a crunchier texture. A little bit of effort in this step makes a big difference!

"Roasting chicken is a skill that every cook should master. Nothing beats a chicken with golden, crisp skin covering juicy, flavorful meat, and roasting is the technique you need to learn to get these delicious results."