LEMON ROASTED BROCCOLI AND FINGERLING POTATOES

Broccoli is one of those vegetables that never quite lives up to its potential. It’s most often steamed and paired with carrots and squash for a pretty boring side dish, or sometimes pureed into a creamy soup, which is one of the few soups that is definitely not better the next day.

So, while I like broccoli, and can appreciate it for its nutritional content, it’s usually one of those vegetables that I find myself saying “I’ll eat it, but I don’t love it.” Until I roasted it.

Roasting broccoli transforms it into an almost new vegetable. Like, seriously, it just does not compare with steamed. At all. It’s crispy and nutty, and all around delicious.

Sometimes I roast it by itself, but lately, I’ve found myself pairing it with fingerling potatoes. Fingerlings are the perfect roasting potato. Not terribly starchy, they hold their shape nicely and brown up beautifully in a hot oven with out a lot of extra work. You know what I’m talking about: someone says they know how to make is the best roasted potatoes, but you find out that you have to soak them or blanch them or something else that takes up too much time, and leaves you with more dishes to clean up. Fingerlings don’t require anything but a toss in oil, some salt and a hot oven.

While you might normally use olive oil here, I’ve made these a dozen times with avocado oil, and I doubt I’ll go back. It’s because the avocado oil heats up better, but also is a perfect match with lemon. At the end, I’ve sprinkled it with red pepper flakes for a kick, or grated Parmesan for a savory bite. Add some crunchy salt and you’ve got a side dish worthy of the best fine restaurant. It’s a great one-pan side that goes with chicken or fish, or for a quick vegetarian main, top with a sunny side up egg.