Roasted Broccoli

Broccoli.  Another longtime vegetable favorite that I have sadly neglected this year.

This recipe, found on Pinterest, was touted as one to make even broccoli-haters happy.  Well, I love broccoli even when the preparation is nothing more than a simple steam, and I've loved all the roasted versions of vegetables I've been trying lately, so I couldn't wait to give this new twist on broccoli a try!

Recipe: (found on Pinterest via amateurgourmet)
Broccoli - the recipe as written called for 4 - 5 pounds of broccoli... I like broccoli... a lot... but not that much - see my adjustments for roasting one head of broccoli ;-)
olive oil
salt
fresh ground black pepper (I eyeballed amounts of all three.)
4 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced (I reduced to 2.)
1 lemon for zest and juice (I used about a quarter of a lemon.)
1/3 cup parmesan cheese (I just eyeballed a sprinkle.)

Recipe also called for toasted pine nuts and julienned basil, both of which I omitted.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Chop your broccoli into edible but fairly large pieces.  Make sure that it is very, very dry.  Broccoli goes on baking sheet.  Drizzle with olive oil.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Add garlic cloves.  Toss around on baking sheet to mix well.

Roast in oven until crisp tender and the tips of some of the florets are lightly browned.  The recipe as written called for 20-25 minutes.  For my smaller amount of broccoli, it was closer to 12-15 minutes.

When done, remove from oven.  Zest lemon over broccoli and squeeze lemon juice over broccoli. Add a bit more olive oil then add parmesan cheese, pine nuts, and basil if using.  Mix well.

Verdict:
Once a broccoli lover, always a broccoli lover.  I still love me some good fresh, steamed broccoli, but I also loved this recipe for a little variety in kitchen.  Roasting really brings out the flavor of the vegetable.  Just a bit of citrus flavor for some zip.  And what doesn't taste amazing with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese?

Not to mention, the weather on this particular technically still winter March day was a stellar 85 degrees, so anything eaten in the sunshine accompanied by our first grilled dogs of the season was bound to impress us.

And don't forget this:

Because that's what grilling weather is all about my friends.