Fine Cooking is my favorite cooking magazine. I do like Saveur, but for some odd reason never cook anything from it, I like Food and Wine a lot, and have mixed feelings about Bon Appetit. In some ways, I think the magazine is going a bit heavy on the trendy, fashionable, hip. Maybe hip is a dated term already, but you catch my drift. Fine Cooking focuses on recipes, good cooking, tips and advice that help not only the novice cook, but those who feel comfortable around the kitchen. My success rate with Fine Cooking recipes is pretty close to 100%, so what’s not to like, right? The latest issue had a nice article on “A New Way to Roast Vegetables” and it’s at the same time simple and clever. They offer many examples of veggie combinations, but the basic idea is that whatever veggie you intend to roast, first you place it in the oven covered with aluminum foil, that will essentially steam the veggie and partially cook it. Next, you remove the cover foil and proceed with the roasting. To make clean up even easier, it is a good idea to line the baking sheet with aluminum foil too, so that during roasting whatever could stick to the pan will stick to the foil instead. Of course, you could steam the veggies in a regular pan first, or even pre-cook them in a microwave, but the simplicity of this method won me over. I did not follow their recipe for carrots, but if you own the magazine take a look at it. They use smallish carrots with the tops still on, and serve them as the appetizer course with a yogurt-spice sauce drizzled all over. I opted for a more austere version, pairing carrots with paprika, not much else.
STEAM-ROASTED CARROTS WITH PAPRIKA
(inspired by Fine Cooking)
5 large carrots, cut any way you like
drizzle of olive oil to coat them
1/4 teaspoon paprika
salt and black pepper to taste
Heat the over to 440 F.
Place the cut carrots in a large bowl, drizzle with the olive oil, and sprinkle spices all over.
Mix well to coat.
Line a baking dish with aluminum foil to allow for easier cleaning later. Make sure to use a rimmed baking sheet, not a baking utensil with tall sides, that will prevent proper browning. Arrange the carrots on a single layer, cover the baking sheet with a second sheet of aluminum foil, and place in the oven for 15 minutes.
Carefully remove the top aluminum foil (use tongs), and leave it in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes more, moving the pieces around after 10 minutes. Serve right away.
ENJOY!
to print the recipe, click here
Comments: We absolutely loved the texture of these carrots. I normally find that roasted carrots need to be cut pretty small to allow for homogeneous cooking at high temperature, and even doing that I end up with some pieces that are too hard, some too soft. This method delivers on all counts, texture and flavor. Of course, you can use all sorts of spices, maybe a bit of maple syrup or Sriracha together with the olive oil (I’ll be trying that combo soon), and serve the carrots with a yogurt-based sauce, with tahini, lemon, whatever you crave at the moment. As I mentioned, I opted for a very basic version, which is a real test for the method, no distractions. Cauliflower, potatoes, eggplant, turnips, they can all be roasted this way, for the most part all veggies have enough moisture to steam while covered.
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Bewitching Kitchen 
This makes sense. What I do when I roast vegetables, especially like broccoli or cauliflower is put the pan in the oven and then turn it on to my roast setting. So while the vegetables are heating up they’re cooking slightly. I sometimes also turn off the oven after roasting, just to assure that they’re cooked through. Just like stoves, I think ovens should be used to their full potential!
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you are so right! Small details like that make all the difference…
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It’s hard to believe there are ‘new’ ways to cook anything these days but food magazines have to put out new issues monthly or bi-monthly year after year. Roasting carrots with some salt, pepper and paprika is as simple as it gets. 🙂
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Indeed, I thought the same. In fact, when I saw the title of the article I started to roll my eyes to the ceiling, but…. then I ate my words 😉
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Fine Cooking is my absolute favorite cooking magazine, and the only magazine I save intact, rather than tear out just the pages I want. Like you, I’ve had near 100% success. I love how they give you options too.
Your carrots look so delicious and colorful! Roasted veggies are so much better than simmered or plain steamed.
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This really takes roasting veggies to a higher level – I will make butternut squash next…
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I really enjoy my Food and Wine mag too. I love reading the in-depth articles, they are always so interesting! I’ve browsed through Saveur in doctor’s offices, but I found it a bit too austere for me. I’ll have to check out Fine Cooking! The roasted carrots look lovely!
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Exactly right.. too austere. The adjective I should have used!
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Great idea and saves the time for pre-cooking carrots. I am not so sure about cauliflower though, I think a “char” brings out the sweetness. I agree about the magazine, it is a keeper. It is one I always quickly scan at the airport to see if I want to buy it.
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Oh, but you can get the char with cauliflower and any other veggie too – the initial covered time just make it a bit more homogeneously cooked, kind of optimized for the real roasting period. In fact, for cauliflower they specifically recommend slicing the florets horizontally to create a nicer surface for the “char” – I am looking forward to testing that soon!
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It’s not a magazine I have ever seen, it’s a great tip though, and your carrots look good!!!
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Too bad, maybe they don’t sell overseas – their recipes are all available online too, I think you can get them, but now that I think about it, perhaps it’s also not a worldwide feature? Not sure… worth a click 😉
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I’ll have a look 🙂
This will be a great tip for the carrots anyway, I find when I roast carrots from raw, I have to cook them for so long that they end up on the verge of burning!
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exactly! And I was happy to see that even cutting them in larger pieces it turned out so well… truly in love with this (I am easily amused) 😉
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I totally get your excitement! 😉
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Makes sense to me…then they don’t get all dried out!
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‘xactly! Don’t know why I never thought of doing it… I have pre-cooked before for a few minutes, almost like a quick blanching. This is easier and much much better
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Yes, why didn’t any of us think to cover the veg for the initial roasting? The technique makes perfect sense and is really quite simple. I also agree with you about the yoghurt sauce. I’m not a fan of sauces when veg are properly roasted. They’re really not needed. Thanks for the tip, Sally. You can bet that’s how I’ll be roasting my vegetables from now on.
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