Candied Roasted Root Vegetable Yogurt Parfait

Diced small, roasted quickly and candied up with a sweet syrup, root vegetables can actually become one of your favorite toppings for yogurt!  

(Note: I accidentally grabbed the wrong container for the photos. My parfait is made with Stonyfield plain and vanilla yogurt blends and not Greek yogurt, although you are more than welcome to use at your preference.)

Jump out of your comfort zone and find out how easy it is to work with root vegetables.  Many of you are very familiar with root vegetables, while many more of you are scared away at just the thought of them (beyond carrots).  Maybe you’ve only tried canned beets (bleh!) or never even picked one up.  Never touched or smelled a turnip?  Do you even know what celery root looks like?  Rutabaga what?!?

You probably didn’t know sweet potatoes are root vegetables, now did you?  Mind blown.

This month, as a Stonyfield Clean Plate Club member, I was challenged to develop a recipe using root vegetables and yogurt.  As I worked on this, I realized I don’t take advantage of root vegetables enough!  Now, I’ve become all crazy about them and might be posting even more recipes in the future (thinking of a good ol’ Thanksgiving one, soon!)

Do not be intimidated by the names or looks of root vegetables!  They all pretty much follow the same standard prep method of wash, peel and chop.  Much like the same way you would peel and cut a carrot or sweet potato.  If you’re wondering how to prep any of them, a quick Google or YouTube video search will help you out!  (That’s what I did!)

For this recipe, I diced a variety of root vegetables and roasted them with a drizzle of olive oil and sprinkling of salt.  It took only 20 minutes to get fork tender.  I cooked a cinnamon and ginger spiced syrup (fresh ginger is also a root vegetable) quickly on the stove, then mixed it into the roasted veggies.  Layered into a single serving cup with yogurt made for a tasty and healthy snack.

Stonyfield Organic is teaming up with Dreamfarm today to give you a chance to win one of their innovative kitchen tools!  For my recipe, I chose to use Dreamform’s Clongs (pictured above).  They are click-lock sit-up tongs, meaning they lock when you push the click-button and are designed to sit up off the counter to avoid leaving a mess.  I love them, too, because even though the arms are stainless steel, the tips are silicone so they are safe to use with nonstick surfaces.  Woop!

GIVEAWAY

Want to win your very own Clongs for your kitchen tools collection?  Leave a comment below and tell me what you think of root vegetables!  Do you love them?  Hate them?  Never tried them?  Intimidated by them?  Ready to play with them?  Tell me! 🙂  We’ll even throw in coupons for quarts of Stonyfield yogurt for the winner!  Contest closes Sunday, 11/2/2014, 10:00PM CDT.  One entry per person, US residents only, please.

I am honored to be a member of the Stonyfield Clean Plate Club. I received product or coupons for writing this post, but all opinions are my own.

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Candied Roasted Root Vegetable Yogurt Parfait

Diced small, roasted quickly and candied up with a sweet syrup, root vegetables can become one of your favorite toppings for yogurt parfait!

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 small sweet potato , peeled and diced
• 1 large carrot , peeled and diced
• 3 radishes , diced
• 2 beets , peeled and diced
• Other root vegetables varieties of choice , peeled and diced (examples are rutabaga, turnip, parsnip, celery root, etc.)
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt

For the Syrup:

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon orange juice
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated ginger root

For the Parfait:

• Yogurt (I prefer Vanilla, Plain or Honey flavored for this recipe)

Instructions

1. Adjust oven rack to center position. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Place diced root vegetables in a mound on center of large rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Use hands or tongs to toss and evenly coat. Spread evenly over baking sheet into one layer. Bake for 20 minutes, or just until fork tender.
3. Meanwhile, prepare the syrup. In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Continue to swirl and cook until the butter just starts turning brown and smells nutty. Add the brown sugar, orange juice, cinnamon and ginger. Stir and cook another 2 minutes until somewhat thicken into a syrup.
4. Remove roasted vegetables from the oven and transfer to a large bowl. Pour in the syrup and toss to coat.
5. To assemble the parfait, spoon a couple tablespoons of yogurt into the bottom of an individual serving bowl. Layer with a spoonful or two of the candied root vegetables and repeat layers. Serve immediately.