Thanks for the Extension

I'm very late writing this, but I would rather post it late, than never.  So....

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!!!!!  Woohoo!!!

(not the same effect one week later?) 

When Cathy at What Would Cathy Eat? asked for a submission for her awesome HealthyThanks (Healthy Thanksgiving) campaign I really really wanted to do it.  And my head was all over the place (more than normally) and i was thinking should i make dessert? a side? something different? traditional? easy? labor intensive and impressive?

And then I gave her nothing.  Went on vacation.  Luckily my blog boss is very very lenient.

But the whole time during my vacation I was regretting not writing a Thanksgiving entry.  There is so much I am thankful for and I wanted to say it.

I returned from vacation and went to the grocery store and bought a few things and suddenly a dish was organically created in my kitchen.  Not realizing that I had made an ideal dish for HealthyThanks - healthy, gluten-free, vegan, and vegetarian...and you'd never know it that the Healthy component was hiding underneath so much flavor.

Without further delay, I want to say I am grateful for:

• Cathy- thanks for the 1 week extension and inspiring me to write this post.
• My Husband - Thanks for taking the trash out today.  And emptying the dishwasher.  And starting the laundry so that I could write this post.  Thanks for making me laugh every day.  And please...no more dutch ovens.
• My Parents - I am so grateful to have both of them still around, and I will use their remaining years to make fun of my dad and to annoy my mom as much as possible.
• My Inlaws - Again, grateful to have both of them around.  My MIL is an amazing cook and a very nurturing spirit and my FIL is an exceptionally optimistic person and always has a spring in his step, smiling no matter what.
• My sister - A talented energetic workhorse who exhibits incredible work ethic and integrity and inspires those who surround her...even though her Type A ness is way out of control.
• My brother-in-law - The man working silently backstage in the giant production of my sister's household.  He even calls me occasionally.
• My nieces - The two cutest buttons on the planet.  They don't even have to say a word to make me smile.  And I only have to say one word to make them smile.  Candy.
• My sister-in-law - The glue of our family.  It always feels empty at home if she's not there.  Thanks for being the one that talks. 
• My sister-in-law's husband - Thanks for being the other foodie in the family. I don't feel so alone!  We have to stick together!
• My friends - Thanks for just being you.  Old, new, near, far.  You will always be appreciated.  You were carefully chosen and I hope you are here to stay.  Especially because you have a lot of dirt on me.
• My new co-workers - Thanks for making this a pleasant place to be every day.  You make me smile and  laugh.  I am so so glad to be here, part of your team, and wish I had been here sooner.  I'm really digging this whole mutual respect thing and the absence of racoons in my workspace.
• My yoga class - Thanks for building a warm community.  I feel the warm energy and love when I walk into the room.  I feel healed instantly when I see each of you...even if I see you while I'm upside down, seeing you through the legs of the person standing between us.
• The blogging community - Thanks for the support and championing my talents and championing the talents of others.  We are a new type of family/community...and A Pie For Mikey demonstrates our magnitude and strength.
• My readers, subscribers, and commenters - Without you, I would not keep coming back to write.  Thank you for making this so enjoyable for me.  And thanks for pretending that you are actually going to make one of my recipes one day. 
• I am also grateful for running water, a roof and shelter, heat and a/c, food, and everything that satisfies  Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs.

...and my smartphone.

Roasted Root Vegetable Soup

gluten-free; vegan; vegetarian
recipe by rabbitfoodrocks

You can't deny the sweet flavors of roasted root vegetables.  This is hearty all on it's own paired with some good whole grain bread.  Any combination of root vegetables work here.  Enjoy this during the winter months!

Ingredients

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 sweet potato, peeled, cut into 1" chunks

1 fennel bulb, quartered (cut again crossways to make them smaller, if needed)

1 turnip, cut into 1" chunks

1 yellow onion, cut into 1" chunks

2 carrots, cut into 1" chunks

2 cups butternut squash (optional), cut into 1" chunks
1 head of garlic

4 sprigs of rosemary

6 cups vegetable broth*

salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1.  Preheat oven to 400.  Slice the very top of the garlic bulb off, just so the top of each clove is barely exposed.  Drizzle 1 tsp of olive oil over the top of the exposed cloves.

2. Put all of the diced root vegetables in a bowl and toss with 1-2 Tablespoons of olive oil.  Not too much - just so that they are barely shiny-looking.  (Do you like my technical and precise instructions?)

3.  Spread all of the veggies on a baking sheet.  Bury/nest the sprigs of rosemary between the veggies.  Put the head of garlic on the baking sheet also.  Bake for 1 hour, or until the vegetables are nicely browned.  Meanwhile, you can make the vegetable broth (see note below).
4.  Remove from the oven, turn off the oven and allow veggies to cool for 15 mins. 
5. Remove the garlic cloves from their pods.  Puree the vegetables and garlic cloves with the vegetable broth in batches.  I recommend 3 batches.  Puree to the desired consistency and empty into a large soup pot until all of the veggie and broth have been pureed together.   You can always add more water to thin it out.
6.  Heat on low, constantly stirring, until warmed through.  Add salt, pepper to taste. (You can also add heat (Tabasco) and an acid component if you like, such as lemon juice)  Serve with garlic crostini or whole grain bread.

*Keep all of the vegetable peels, skins, etc - you can use them to make the vegetable broth.  Boil 6 cups water and add salt, and then add the peels, ends, etc.  (Seems weird and gross, but I did it...and it worked well, and  I lived long enough to write this recipe.)  Let simmer for 40 mins on lowest while root vegetables bake (during step 3).   Then cool for 15 minutes.