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Roasted vegetables with Italian herbs are the perfect healthy and tasty side dish to pretty much any meal! And you can even eat them as an antipasto (starter). In your favourite sandwich. Or even in a delicious barley, rice or pasta salad. In this recipe we show you the Italian way of making roasted vegetables.
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For other delicious vegan Italian appetizers or salads, check out our:
- Pasta salad with lemon vinaigrette
- Bruschetta with tomatoes
- Vegan Italian Rice Salad
- Panzanella salad (stale-bread Italian salad)
- Vegan potato salad
- Italian barley salad
- Roasted bell peppers
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Potatoes: any potatoes work here. Use organic potatoes if you like them with the skin on.
- Sweet potatoes: bright orange sweet potatoes are our favourite. They are delicious and full of healthy nutrients. You can replace them with pumpkin or butternut squash.
- Zucchini (courgettes): make sure they are fresh, or else they'll taste bitter. You can replace them with fennel.
- Eggplants (aubergines): like the zucchini, make sure they are fresh or else they'll taste bitter. You can replace them, or complement them, with some bell peppers.
- Onions: we suggest sweet large onions, but any other onion will work too. You can replace them with leek.
- Carrots: any colour or carrots is suitable for oven-roasting. You can replace carrots with celeriac, Jerusalem artichoke and parsnip.
- Mushrooms: we used white champignon mushrooms, but you can use porcini, chanterelles, or any other mushroom variety.
- Spices: fresh rosemary is a must for Italian roasted vegetables. It can be complemented or replaced by thyme and ready made Italian spice mix. Use fresh parsley and basil to season the veggies only after they are cooked.
- Garlic and Olive Oil: both important for flavour building. You could replace the olive oil with any other vegetable oil, but you won't get the same Italian roasted vegetables flavour. You can also use some balsamic vinegar on top of the cooked onions and carrots.
Tips
Choose seasonal vegetables
You can roast pretty much any vegetable in the oven. We recommend choosing vegetables that are local and in season for three reasons. 1) They are cheaper. 2) They are more environmentally friendly as they don't have to be shipped from the other side of the world. 3) They are tastier and more nutritious.
Cut in similar sizes
Cut vegetables in similar sizes so that they will cook all at the same time. Some vegetables (potatoes) take longer than others (aubergine and zucchini). Take this into account when putting them in the oven.
Similar cooking times
Only put vegetables with similar cooking times on the same tray. Potatoes and sweet potatoes can go together. Aubergines and zucchini can also go together.
Mix with your hand
When seasoning vegetables always use your hands to evenly distribute the seasoning.
eggplant and zucchine potatoes and sweet potatoes
Frequently asked questions
We try to cook our vegetables with the skin on as the skin contains a lot of flavour and nutrients. You can always take the skin off after the veggies are cooked.
Cook and eat: potatoes, pumpkin, zucchini, aubergine, carrots, Jerusalem artichoke, asparagus, tomatoes, mushrooms, parsnip.
Only cook: bell peppers, red beets, whole sweet potatoes, pumpkins and butternut squash with thicker skins.
If you like your veggies crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside we recommend cooking them at relatively high temperatures (between 200°C / 390°F to 230°C / 450°F).
Oil gives a lot of flavour to the vegetables and it protects them from burning during cooking. However, oil also adds a lot of calories. For our daily meals, we cook our baked vegetables without any oil. We believe they still taste delicious and they are much healthier. On special occasions we add some olive oil.
Variations
You can use the same seasoning to cook all kinds of vegetables. Try adding in fennel, Jerusalem artichokes, red beets, butternut squash, bell peppers, parsnip, other sorts of mushrooms, tomatoes, celeriac, red and black carrots, broccoli and cauliflower.
Storage
Store your left-over Italian roasted vegetables in a container in the fridge for up to 2 days. Reheat the vegetables in the oven. Alternatively, cut them up in dice and use them for a pasta, rice or orzo salad.
Recipe
Roasted vegetables with Italian herbs
Ingredients
- 2 zucchini
- 3 carrots
- 1 eggplant
- 1 onion
- 200 g (7 oz) mushrooms
- 1 sweet potato
- 4 potatoes
- 5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic
- fresh rosemary
- dry Italian herbs
- salt and pepper
- fresh basil and parsley (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 430°F (220°C). Wash all the vegetables thoroughly. Prepare 3 baking trays and line them with parchment paper or silicon baking mats.
- Cut the zucchini along their long side into 0.5cm (0.2 inches) slices.
- Cut the carrots into small chunks.
- Slice the eggplant into 0.5cm (02. inches) discs.
- Peel the sweet potato, then cut it into wedges.
- Cut the potatoes into wedges. You can keep the skin on.
- Cut each mushroom into 4 pieces.
- Peel the onion, then slice it into 0.5cm (0.2 inches) discs.
- Place the potatoes and the sweet potatoes on a baking tray, then season them with 2 tbsp of olive oil, 3 pinches of salt, a pinch of pepper, some fresh rosemary and 2 crushed garlic cloves. Mix everything well with your hands, then spread evenly on the tray.
- Bake at 430°F (220°C) for about 40 minutes, or until soft and golden.
- On a second baking tray, place the zucchini and the aubergine. Then brush them with some olive oil, salt, pepper and Italian herbs.
- Bake @ 430°F (220°C) for about 30 minutes. Then season with some fresh parsley.
- On a third tray, place the mushrooms, the onion rings, and the chopped carrots. Season with crushed garlic, some rosemary, 1.5 tbsp of olive oil, salt and pepper.
- Bake @ 430°F (220°C) for about 30 minutes. Then season with some fresh parsley.
Notes
Nutritional Values
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Did you make this recipe at home? Let us know in the comments below, or tag us on Instagram @italiaplantbased.
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