Easy Roasted Veggies and Pizza with Almond Arugula Pesto

Roasted root veggies are my latest obsession. Well, one of my obsessions, but at least my craziness keeps me occupied. Things like this tend to happen when you get more than one turnip that’s as big as your head! (Thanks winter CSA for making me more turnip friendly!)

You can roast veggies in the slow cooker or in the oven depending on your preference. It’s been really cold here the past few days and I have enjoyed turning on the oven as much as possible for a little extra heat in the house. One thing is that you have more wiggle room time-wise in the slow cooker and it’s much harder to burn them.

In The Oven:
I tried roasting in the oven 2 different ways, one covered with aluminum foil and one not covered. I cooked both on a 375 degree oven for about 40 minutes. I stirred them half way.

I found the one that I covered (until the last 10 or 15 minutes of cooking) to be juicy and lush. I liked the uncovered ones but the texture was a little tougher and they took a little longer to cook. It just depends on what you like the best.

In The Slow Cooker:
Roasting in the slow cooker is easy too. You can cook them on high for about 2 hours on high or low for about 4. Just oil the crock and place a layer or two of chopped or diced root veggies. You want to fill it less than 1/2 way if possible. I use one of my 6 quart ovals just so the veggies aren’t crowded.

Just how long you’ll cook the veggies depend on how big you cut them. I’d recommend cutting them smaller for the slow cooker and stirring every 30 to 45 minutes so they cook evenly. They are ready to eat when a fork pierces the veggies easily.

My first batch contained turnip, rutebaga, purple potatoes, carrots and radishes. I’ve been saving up radishes from my CSA because I just didn’t know what to do with them. The answer is, roast them! They lost that spicy edge and became sweet and juicy. It was a revelation for me.

I would suggest you don’t add sweet potatoes into the mix though. They will break down before the other veggies are done. You’ll end up with chunks of roasted veggies in what is basically mashed sweet potato.

The first recipe I made with these yummy veggies was a pizza. It’s not really an exact recipe but it’s super easy. All you need is some pizza dough, a pizza shell, or something else to build your pizza on.

I used a vegan cashew spread from The Vegan Holiday Kitchen by Nava Atlas as my base. Then I topped it with the roasted veggies and sprinkled arugula pesto over the whole pizza. I cooked it in a 375 degree oven until the crust was cooked since I used raw pizza dough. If you used a pre-cooked pizza shell you will cook it about 7 to 10 minutes or until the center is hot.