I’m always looking for simple veggie sides to round out my meals. Some of my favorite options include bacon brussels sprouts, sauteed kale and these savory roasted parsnips.
Roasted Parsnips Ingredients
To make roasted parsnips you will need parsnips, butter, olive oil, garlic, Italian seasoning, parsley, salt and black pepper. You may want lemon wedges and parsley sprigs to garnish your dish. Roasting vegetables always enhances the flavor. Try some of my other recipes for roasted vegetable side dishes like roasted green beans, roasted cabbage, roasted root vegetables and roasted acorn squash!
How Do You Make Roasted Parsnips?
Start this roasted parsnips recipe by cutting your peeled parsnips into sticks. Next preheat your oven and prepare a sheet pan with cooking spray. Arrange the parsnips on your baking sheet in a single layer. In a small bowl, whisk together melted butter, olive oil, minced garlic, Italian seasoning, salt and black pepper. Next, coat the parsnip sticks in the seasoning mixture. Place them in your preheated oven, then roast at high heat until the veggies get tender and caramelized. Add a sprinkling of fresh parsley, then serve and enjoy.
Tips For The Perfect Parsnips
Cut your vegetables into similar sized pieces so that they cook at the same rate. I use a combination of both butter and olive oil because I like the flavor of the butter, but the olive oil stands up to high roasting temperatures better. You can use all olive oil if you prefer. Make sure to peel your parsnips before cutting them into sticks. This recipe calls for dried Italian seasoning which is a blend of garlic powder, dried basil, oregano, and parsley. You can buy Italian seasoning or make your own Italian seasoning. I like to garnish my roasted parsnips with lemon wedges so that people can squeeze a little lemon juice over their veggies for extra flavor. I use chopped fresh parsley to finish off my dish because I always have it on hand. Other types of fresh herbs will work such as dill, green onions or basil. These parsnips are excellent with main dishes like baked chicken drumsticks and Yankee pot roast or fall recipes like apple pork chops. For easier cleanup you can line your baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper.
Flavor Variations
These roasted parsnips are fabulous as-is, but you can add other ingredients to customize the flavors to your tastes.
Cheese: Add 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese before serving. Olives: Add 1/4 cup sliced kalamata olives before serving. Bacon: Sprinkle 1/3 cup of cooked, crumbled bacon over the finished dish. Onions: Add a medium red onion, cut into 1/2 inch thick wedges, to the sheet pan along with the raw parsnips. Veggies: Feel free to do an assortment of root vegetables such as sweet potatoes, Yukon gold potatoes, carrots and beets. Spicy: Add some crushed red pepper flakes to your butter mixture to give your parsnips some heat. Herbs: Feel free to add fresh chopped rosemary or fresh chopped thyme to your butter mixture. Sweet: You can make a sweeter version of this dish by adding two tablespoons of maple syrup or honey to your seasoning mixture and omitting the Italian seasoning and garlic. If you use honey, microwave it for a few seconds to make it more liquid before mixing it in.
Even my kids love the nutty flavor of these roasted parsnips, they’re just that good! Add this dish to your menu rotation this week, you’ll be glad you did. This dish is also perfect for a Thanksgiving meal and goes great with roast turkey!
Roasted Parsnips Video
