Let’s Have A Roast


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No, not that kind of roast! This kind of roast:

Ever since I saw Chef DennisRatatouille Confite, I knew I had to make it. Yes, I know I’ve been on a roasted veggie kick lately, but with the wonderful variety of fresh vegetables available during the summer, how can I resist?

For my roasted veggie mix, I used heirloom tomatoes, zucchini, yellow squash, eggplant, onion, and garlic. I drizzled this delicious chaos with extra virgin olive oil and fresh thyme and popped it into the oven until the aroma of roasted vegel practically wafted from the oven. I roasted so many vegetables that the eggplant needed its own pan:

You guys know how much I love sausage, so the addition of chicken sausage will not surprise you.

Great recipe, Chef Dennis!

After such a rich meal, a little dessert was called for:

Dessert was a sliced Paula Red apple with dabs of white chocolate peanut butter and dark chocolate peanut butter. The white chocolate peanut butter is courtesy of my food processor. The dark chocolate peanut butter is courtesy of this little gem:

Unsurprisingly, my milk chocolate-loving husb doesn’t like this peanut butter.

Let’s get a REALLY close look at this fab peanut butter:

Smear that on anything, and you’ve got a treat.

Remember the goji plant we bought back in April? Under Peter’s tender nurturing, the goji plant has borne fruit! And when I say fruit, I mean “fruit” in the singular.

Yes, that ONE goji berry is our harvest.

I tried to split the ONE goji berry with Peter – I think we ate 2 molecules each. I’ve eaten both dried and frozen goji berries before, but the fresh berry seemed milder in flavor (?) It’s hard to tell, since I think my bite of goji berry didn’t even make it past the tip of my tongue. I hope next year’s harvest is more … fruitful.

Have a nice weekend, everyone!

Q: Do you have a garden and/or indoor plants? What are you growing?

18 Comments

  1. Ooh, that’s a good liking roast Jessie! And I saw that episode of The Office, too funny! Chef Dennis does some amazing stuff doesn’t he? I always think of zuchinni blossoms when I think of him…teehee. And white chocolate peanut butter? Oh why am I allergic to peanut butter. Speaking of which, I tried Stella’s peanut butter recipe today and it blew me away! Simple yet delicious. I used almond butter though. Here’s the link
    http://thewitchykitchen.blogspot.com/2010/08/david-k-stack-everyday-tings.html
    Since you have a peanut butter obsession, I think you’ll enjoy it. I’m still very intrigued by your white chocolate peanut butter though.

    Omg! Lol-ed at the goji berry! You two are too cute! I would’ve eaten it myself and be like, “what berry? It must’ve fallen off or the kids ate it.” hahaha. Anyways, hope next year you have better luck. I don’t have a garden and am jealous of anyone who does. We just moved in last year and have yet to get our deck in. We’re one of those BBQ on the driveway neighbors. Anyways, hope you have a wonderful time hiking! Have lotsa fun Wiener 😉

  2. Oops, liking=looking. And I’m the first to comment, woot woot! Finally! Was FB stalking and saw your post.

  3. Wow, one whole goji berry? Actually, I shouldn’t point fingers since I can’t keep anything alive for more than a day or two. I am with LeQuan – I would have taken it for myself.

    Jessie – I love your new photo with the red headband. You look gorgeous.

  4. Your little garden is adorable!!! Next year will be better. You’ll be goji berry-d out!

    I just tried Ratatouille for the first time last week and I am in LOVE! Vegetables are taking precedence in my life big time right now!!

  5. Looks like a great roast! We want a garden, but we live overseas and are renting. All the land we have is free territory for the dog and since it is not our land, we are not going to start sectioning off area, but one day we will have a nice garden.

  6. I’m soooooo lazy! I bought lettuce, beans etc. to grow in our little garden but never got round to it. Too bad, because I love fresh veggies from a home garden, like my mum’s summer cottage.

    I’ve been on a roasted broccoli mode for a while now, roasted veggies just are the best 🙂

  7. I love that chocolate PB!! Maranatha is my favorite brand ever!! 🙂

    Andrew planted us a garden, but then neglected it… we ate a few tomatoes from it, some jalapenos, and banana peppers, but everything else died. 🙁 Bad Andrew!! 😉

    Have a great weekend!! 🙂

  8. Hey Jessie!! 🙂

    BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA fruitful goji plant. In my mind’s eye, I can just picture Peter’s “tender and nurturing care” of the goji plant… Like a mother borning a child. Child in the singular. I hope your next year’s harvest is more fruitful, indeed. More tender and nurturing care, I guess 🙂

    Your chicken sausage looks amazing. I guess that’s because I’ve only ever seen pork sausages really before, and they always look somewhat like they’ve been semi-mutilated…and/or that they obviously look like they’re of swine origin. On the matter of roasting, has Peter ever harvested the solar energy in the summer to bake stuff outdoors? I was just wondering because I know my brother used to do that with hot dogs when we were younger….

    much love,
    Aletheia

  9. Ahhhhh you have Goji berries!!!!!! I didn’t know we can actually grow them in the garden. I carry them all the way from China! Now you can enjoy it, in tea, in cereal, in baking… 🙂

    I love your new profile picture – pretty girl!

  10. I’ve always loved ratatouille! I think that cooked/roasted tomatoes have such incredible flavor. I love them! This looks great, Jessie.

    Also, white chocolate and dark chocolate peanut butter sound so great! Very decadent. I’ve never tried them, and I’ve actually never seen that flavor of Maranatha (although I do love their raw almond butter!)…I know that PB and Co has a white chocolate and dark chocolate flavor that people seem to love, but I’ve never tried it. My favorite chocolate “nut” butter is Artisana Cacao Bliss, made with coconut butter. It’s very sweet- definitely a dessert in my mind- but it tastes amazing.

    It’s so interesting that you have a goji plant. I think it would be cool to try the fresh berry. I love the color! I don’t have a green thumb unfortunately, so no plants for me…also my cat likes to eat them so I sadly can’t keep any plants in my house.

  11. Oh, that episode of the Office was uncomfortably awkward! haha

    I love that you always have new fruits/veggies featured on your blog! Stuff that I’ve never tried — like fresh Goji berries. I think it’s awesome that you have a plant, though I’m sorry your harvest was so small. Hopefully you’ll get more than 1 next time 🙂

  12. Isn’t it gratifying to “grow your own”? I LOVE your goji berry! It is so delicate and sweet and gorgeous. I cannot imagine how lovely an entire tree or bush would look filled with them!
    🙂
    Good luck growing.
    Valerie

  13. Thank you so much for the mention on your blog, I really appreciate it and I am so glad your veggies came out well….I tell you that is the best smell to have going through your house! The chicken sausage sounds like a wonderful addition! the white chocolate peanut butter sounds really good, what a combo with the dark chocolate PB and the apples!!!! It looks like you had one great meal!

  14. A beautiful roast! (I liked Angela’s roast too, though. 😉 )

    Your goji berry is adorable. 😛

    I was trying to grow a lot of herbs this summer and so far have killed 3 mint plants (2 by drowning, 1 by burning), a lemon balm plant, a rosemary plant and a lavender plant. I currently have two replacement mints (chocolate mint and peppermint) and chives growing. I also have an accidental mango sapling growing but it’s doubtful that’ll give up any fruit, sadly.

  15. I love your goji fruit! 🙂 I hope next year is a bumper crop. Either way though, you and Peter did better than I ever could (I am horrible with plants!). That dark chocolate peanut butter sounds incredible!

  16. OMG! Sorry but I have to jump right to that gorgeous chocolate peanut butter. It looks so rich and dark and gooey!

    ROFL – two molecules each? Maybe fresh is more potent? 😉 Jessie – your veggie roast looks really delicious – maybe because I like everything you put in it, but I know such a combination can’t go wrong! And sausage makes everything good, doesn’t it? I wish sausages were health food *sigh*

    I have a potted garden outside my apartment (hard to explain LOL) but I have things like pandan, bay, Indian borage and turmeric growing. I like the pandan and Indian borage best – they both smell incredible!

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