Thanksgiving Experiment, Part Two

Because I wasn't hosting Thanksgiving dinner this year, I had some time to play around with new side dishes, looking for the next classic in my repertoire. This colorful melange of winter root veggies seemed particularly appealing when Tara posted about it just prior to the big day.

Tara's blog, Tea and Cookies, is one of those that I visit as much for the photography and the writing as for the recipes. Tara is mostly a vegetarian and if you read my blog frequently you'll know that I'm anything but. However, Tara writes so beautifully that she tempts me to try all kinds of veggie delights. Look at this, for example - spectacular!

This dish does require a bit of chopping of root vegetables but, once you get going, you're on a roll. The roasted veggies are mellow, almost sweet, and as colorful as a plate full of gemstones. I used thyme rather than rosemary just because my thyme plant is going strong and I had no rosemary in the house and even my mother couldn't force me to eat rutabaga, but I'm sure it would be equally good just the way Tara envisioned it.

While we are enjoying it as a side dish (it made a huge pan of veggies, so we are slowly eating our way through it), I'm thinking it would make a great substrate for other foods. For example, I think it would be dynamite with a poached egg on top, a jewel-toned vegetarian hash. Can't you just imagine the orange yolk of a fresh egg adding its color to the brilliance of this tumble of red, orange, yellow and cream?

Thanks to daughter Katie and her Main Man for hosting and giving me time to experiment for next Thanksgiving's hit parade.