Root Vegetable Cassoulet Recipes

ROAST VEGETABLE CASSOULET

Steps:

• Bring the beans to boil in a saucepan of cold water, simmer for 5 minutes, take off heat and cover tightly. Leave for 2 hours.
• Drain the beans, return to pan, cover with fresh cold water and add the herb bundle and vegetable quarters. Bring to boil and simmer for 1 hour until tender.
• Preheat oven to 200C/Gas 6/fan oven 180C. Heat 3 tablespoons of the oil in a casserole and fry the chopped onion and celery until soft. Add the garlic and cook for 3-4 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, sugar and half the tarragon. Season.
• Drain beans, retaining 1.2 litres/2 pints of liquid. Discard veg and herbs. Stir 600ml/1 pint of the liquid into the tomato mixture and simmer, half-covered, for 30 minutes. Toss the squash, carrot and celeriac chunks in 5 tablespoons of oil. Season and roast in a tray for 30 minutes.
• Remove vegetables and reduce heat to 180C/Gas 4/fan oven 160C. Stir beans, vegetables, mustard and half the parsley into the casserole. Add liquid if needed to make the mixture nicely moist. Check seasoning. Turn into a wide baking dish. (You can prepare to this stage the day before. Cool, cover and refrigerate. Next day, if the beans have absorbed too much liquid, moisten with bean liquid or stock.)
• Mix the breadcrumbs with the remaining parsley and tarragon. Scatter over and drizzle with remaining oil. Bake for 50 minutes. (Add an extra 10 minutes if making ahead.) Serve from the dish.

ROOT VEGETABLE CASSEROLE - FREEZER FRIENDLY COMFORT FOOD

Steps:

• Peel turnip, carrots, parsnips and sweet potato and cut them into chunks. I chopped the turnip smallest because it takes the longest to cook, and the sweet potato larger because it cooks faster. The carrots and parsnips are somewhere in the middle (see photo below for an example).
• Put them in a large pot with 1 teaspoon of salt, cover with water and bring to a boil. Cook until vegetables are soft enough to be pierced with a fork or sharp knife (make sure that each kind of vegetable is soft).
• Drain. I put a strainer over a large bowl so I could save the vegetable broth and make a soup. Put vegetables back in the pot.
• Use a potato masher to mash them up. Then use a hand mixer to cream them together. Add butter, cream cheese and 1/2 teaspoon of salt and mix well to combine and make them creamy.
• Spoon them into a large casserole dish. You can refrigerate, or even freeze the casserole until you're ready to eat it. When you're ready, bring the dish to room temperature and preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Sprinkle with panko. Bake until heated through (around 30 minutes) and top is browned (you might need to broil it for a couple of minutes).
• Serve hot and enjoy! :)

ROOT VEGETABLE COBBLER

Steps:

• Prepare the vegetables- peel and chop into 1 inch chunks.
• Place the chopped tomatoes, crushed garlic, olive oil, and a teaspoon of oregano into a large saucepan.
• Simmer gently for 5 minutes then add the chopped vegetables.
• Simmer for 15 minutes.
• Place in a large casserole dish, with the lentils, in oven on a medium heat (350 degrees F) for one hour.
• Prepare the cobbler tops by rubbing the flour and a teaspoon of mixed herbs into the vegetable fat.
• Mix to a stiff paste with some water and shape into balls.
• Place on top of the casserole for 20 minutes or until browned.

CASSOULET

Steps:

• Drain the beans and put into a large heavy casserole, preferably enameled cast iron, with bacon, pork rind, garlic, 1 onion, the carrot, and the bouquet garni. Cover with the 10 cups of water and bring to a boil. Simmer over low heat, stirring often, until beans are barely tender, about 1 hour. Drain and return to casserole, discarding onion and bouquet garni.
• Add the remaining onion, the duck legs, demi-glace mixture, and tomatoes, and bring to a boil. Add a pinch of salt and pepper, and simmer over low heat for about 15 minutes.
• Drain the bean mixture in a colander over a bowl and reserve 5 cups of the cooking liquid. Discard bacon and pork rind. Remove the duck legs and cut each in half at the joint. Season beans with 1 teaspoon salt and a few grindings of pepper.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
• Place half the bean mixture in casserole. Add duck legs, duck sausage, and garlic sausage, and cover with remaining beans. Add reserved cooking liquid and drizzle the duck fat over the top. Cover and bake until hot and bubbling, about 2 hours. (Cassoulet may be prepared ahead to this point, then cooled and refrigerated for up to 3 days. If refrigerated, bring to room temperature before proceeding).
• Increase oven temperature to 400 degrees F. Uncover cassoulet and bake until top is browned, about 20 minutes. Remove from oven and serve.

ROOT VEGETABLE CASSOULET

Steps:

• The night before you want to make the cassoulet, put the dried beans in a pot with enough cold water to cover them by at least an inch. Let the beans soak overnight in the refrigerator, then rinse and drain them. (Or, if you're in a rush--or you haven't planned far enough in advance--bring the water with the beans to a boil, boil for 2 minutes, pull the pot from the heat, and soak the beans for an hour. Rinse the beans under cold water and drain.)
• Warm 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a small saute pan or skillet over medium heat. When it's hot, add the onion and garlic and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until the onion and garlic are tender but not colored, about 10 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and, when it's incorporated evenly, add the diced tomato; pull the pan from the heat and set aside.
• Put the beans in a Dutch oven or large casserole. Pour in the stock and bring to the boil. Add the celery, carrots, turnips, fennel, split tomato, and the bouquet garni. Cut a parchment paper circle to fit inside the pot (see Glossary, page 369) and press the paper gently against the ingredients. Lower the heat so that the liquid bubbles at a steady simmer, and cook, stirring now and then, until the beans are tender, about 1 hour. Season the casserole with salt and pepper shortly before the beans are cooked through. When the beans are done, pull the pot from the heat and remove and discard the bouquet garni and whatever is left of the tomato. Drain the liquid from the pot into a pitcher and keep close at hand. Working gently, transfer the vegetables to a bowl.
• Spoon the beans into a baking dish--a pottery casserole would be perfect--and stir in the onion-tomato paste mixture along with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add enough of the reserved cooking liquid to just cover the beans. Top with the vegetables and moisten with more of the cooking liquid. Reserve the remaining liquid if you are going to reheat the cassoulet. (The cassoulet can be made up to this point a day in advance, cooled, and stored tightly covered in the refrigerator. Bring it to room temperature, then reheat it for about 1 hour in a 350 degree F. oven, adding some of the reserved cooking liquid if the casserole seems dry. Fifteen minutes before the cassoulet's ready, put on the crust and turn up the oven temperature, as directed below.)
• The Crust: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Toss together the bread crumbs, garlic, and parsley and stir in the melted butter. Spread the mixture evenly over the cassoulet and slide the casserole into the oven. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the crumbs are golden brown and crusty.
• To Serve: Bring the casserole to the table and serve immediately, spooning crust, vegetables, and beans into warm soup plates.

ROOT VEGETABLE GRATIN WITH BLUE CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425°F. Butter 9x13x2-inch baking dish.
• Peel parsnips and carrots and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Peel rutabagas, cut in half, then cut into 1/4-inch-thick half-rounds. Bring cream, stock, garlic and thyme to boil in large saucepan. Add rutabagas, cover and simmer 10 minutes. Add carrots and parsnips to rutabagas and simmer 5 minutes longer. Season generously with salt and pepper.
• Transfer vegetables and cream mixture to prepared dish. Bakes uncovered until vegetables are tender and liquid thickens, about 35 minutes. Sprinkle cheese over and bake 10 minutes longer. Cool 15 minutes before serving. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Reheat in covered dish in 350°F. oven about 20 minutes.)

WHITE BEAN AND VEGETABLE CASSOULET WITH MILLET CRUST

Steps:

• Heat 1 tablespoon oil in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add bell peppers, onions, carrot and garlic and sauté until tender, about 15 minutes. Add squash, green beans, cumin and harissa paste and stir 1 minute. Add tomatoes with juices and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook until mixture thickens slightly, stirring occasionally, about 12 minutes. Mix in cannellini and 1/4 cup basil. Transfer mixture to 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.)
• Heat 1 teaspoon oil in medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add millet and stir until light golden, about 5 minutes. Add 2 cups water and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium, cover and cook until millet is tender and liquid is almost absorbed, about 20 minutes. Drain millet. Transfer to bowl and cool. Mix in breadcrumbs and remaining 2 teaspoons oil.
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Sprinkle millet mixture evenly over vegetables in baking dish. Bake until vegetables are heated through and topping begins to crisp, about 35 minutes. Sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup basil around edges and serve.