Roasted Autumn Vegetables with Apple, Maple, Mustard and Crispy Fried Ginger

While on my trip to England my friend and I were out for a long day of shopping by the end of which we were starving and incredibly tired. She stopped in at Marks and Spencer* for one of their roast dinner deals. I was a little skeptical, but I will happily eat almost anything and went along with the plan. It involved sticky toffee pudding, I wasn’t going to say no. The side veggie was a maple and mustard roast parsnips which I ended up really enjoying. That, combined with Leslie’s magical chicken roasting powers made for a very nice meal. That combination of maple, mustard, and parsnips has been on my mind ever since and this week I decided to combine these flavors Endive style to share with you.

I knew I wanted to use something more than just parsnips, so I turned to a few of my favorites; celery root, fennel and apple, knowing they would all be fantastic with maple, ginger and mustard. The maple really brings out the natural sweetness of the parsnips and fennel. While the mustard and ginger helps that sweetness cross to the savory side of the kitchen like some sort of culinary crossing guard. I roasted the apples separately on parchment, for only a short amount of time and then jump them in a frying pan. This is because apples are so delicate and have a tendency to disintegrate when roasted. The apples should be soft but with a certain amount of firmness, as if it has just passed from the raw to cooked state. Be sure to use the parchment or a silpat to avoid sticking, otherwise your pretty apple rings might not survive to see plating.

Give this recipe a try, it is a fun and elegant preparation that is impressive, but easy to do. It also tastes delicious, I hope you like it.

Roasted Autumn Vegetables with Apple, Maple, Mustard and Crispy Fried Ginger

1 Celery Root, cut into sticks or julienned then par boiled for a few minutes

1 Parsnips, cut into sticks or julienned then par boiled for a few minutes

1 Fennel Bulb, sliced thin and par boiled for a few minutes, reserve a few fronds for garnishing

2 Apples, cored and sliced into rings

2 or 3 inches Fresh Ginger, julienned

1/4 cup Real Maple Syrup

3 TBS Olive Oil + more to fry the ginger

1 1/2 TBS Dijon Mustard

1 tsp Mustard Seeds

Freshly Ground Pepper, to taste

Sea Salt, to taste

Preheat the oven to 425F.

Whisk together the syrup, oil, mustard, seeds, pepper and salt in the bottom of a large bowl. Brush a little of the mixture over the apples before roasting for 10 minutes on a baking pan lined with parchment. Place the prepared celery root, parsnips and fennel in the bowl and toss gently to coat before spreading out across a large baking pan and roast for 30 to 40 minutes.

After the veggies are safely in the oven, it is time to fry your ginger. Heat an inch of oil in a frying pan over medium heat, add in the ginger and fry until golden, it should only take a few minutes. Remove from the pan and drain on a towel.

5 or 10 minutes or so before the veggies are done roasting carefully sear your apple rings in a hot non-stick or well seasoned pan until brown on both sides and place on the serving plate or plates. When the veggies are ready, remove them from the oven and use them to top the apple rings. Garnish with the fennel fronds and ginger then serve immediately.

* I don’t think I’ve ever seen so much packaging used in a grocery department before. Wow.