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Roasted Fennel & Onions

October 23, 2008

I remember the fennel I cooked from last year’s CSA very fondly, when I roasted bone-in chicken pieces on top of it and other root vegetables. Look away if you’re a vegetarian: the drippings from the chicken mixed with the vegetables, giving them delicious flavor and adding just the right amount of fat to the dish. (I would do that roasting differently now, putting the chicken in first and adding the vegetables around the chicken after 20 minutes or so, then roasting them both together for another 40-50 minutes. It’s a technique Merrie taught me!)

I was really excited to cook with fennel again. This time I followed Elise of Simply Recipe’s suggestion to toss the fennel in balsamic vinegar and olive oil before roasting. I also sliced a medium sweet onion into the same thickness as the fennel slices, and sprinkled the whole thing with a little sea salt. I don’t care for raw or even still-firm cooked fennel, so I roasted my fennel and onions for closer to 45 minutes, until they were soft and caramelized.

My mom, J. and I all enjoyed this preparation, but I still prefer the fennel roasted with chicken.

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Filed under: CSA,Veggie Sides

Tags: csa, fat, raw, vegetarian, whole