Sunday = Roast Day in my house, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I currently live in my family home, and for as long as I can remember, we have had a Kelly house tradition that on Sundays, we always have a roast dinner of some kind. That good old hearty Irish ‘meat, spuds & 2 veg’ type of dinner – you know what I mean! I love it – its such a comforting meal and usually its a night of the week when all 6 of us are home to eat together and catch up with/tease each other about what’s going on with everyone.

So while we’re pretty set in what the dinner usually involves, recently I decided I’d mix up the veggies section a little. As always when I’m testing recipes out on my family, there was a degree of teasing and apprehension involved, but it was positive feedback all round with this one! (I think me buying a spiraliser and putting courgette in my oats freaked them out too much and its never been the same since…sigh).

Recipe (serves 6)

Ingredients

• 1-1.5 bags of large carrots, peeled and chopped into medium-length pieces (about 1/2 inch thick) – this translates to about 10-12 large carrots
• 4 large parsnips
• 1 tsp harissa seasoning
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp sweet paprika
• Pinch of sea salt
• Pinch of ground black pepper
• 2 tbsp melted coconut oil
• Note: These are just the veggies I chose for this recipe, but obviously feel free to add your own favourites – options like beetroot, bell peppers or courgette would be great too!

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200C.
2. Peel and chop your veggies and place into a large bowl.
3. Pour over the melted coconut oil and mix up among the veggies so they’re evenly coated.
4. Toss your spices over the vegetables and mix again. I find it easiest to put all my spices into a small bowl and combine them first, and then sprinkle over the vegetables.
5. Place your vegetables into a large roasting pan.
6. Sprinkle the sea salt and black pepper on top.
7. When the oven is ready, roast for 30-40 minutes, depending on how much or little crunch you like the veggies to have! I roast mine for 40 minutes, but I would advise turning the vegetables halfway through, and checking at 30 minutes to see how they’re doing.