Dr Seuss and Roasted Vegetables

Happy Birthday to Dr. Seuss! My kids are at our table happily coloring their Dr Seuss activity books. Who doesn't love Dr. Seuss? The man was a genius! I'd rather read his books over and over to my kids then any others. As I was compiling my kids packets I came across this quote by Dr Seuss:

"Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You!"

What a beautiful sentiment! How much easier would our lives be if we focused more on being "you"? If we stopped trying to be like the mom next door (whose 14 month old is potty trained and always has her hair and makeup done), or the 18 year old at the gym (whose running for an hour at a 10 incline and never sweats a drop), or the lady at the grocery store (who has her coupons perfectly organized and paid $12 for her cart of groceries)? Today you are you, tomorrow you will be you, in 10 years you will be you. You are the only person you will be with every day of your entire life. How much easier would that life be if we love that person, huh? I propose that we all stop trying to be someone else and start trying to be the best "you" you can be! "There is no one alive who is Youer than you!"

Anyway, so on a low-carb diet you eat a lot of vegetables. I mean A LOT of vegetables! SO after a while you start looking for different ways to cook them (a little desperately). Right now my favorite method is roasting. Roasting vegetables gives them a deep, nutty flavor that is fantastic. Also, since I'm not a big fan of mushy anything, it gives them a slight crispiness.

What can you roast? Anything you want! Right now my favorites are broccoli, cauliflower and asparagus. Asparagus is especially tasty when roasted. Here's how you do it:

Roasted Asparagus

Wash your bunch of asparagus and then trim the stems. Here's how you know where to trim an asparagus. Grab the top of the asparagus with one hand and the bottom with the other. Gently bend the asparagus until it naturally breaks. Do 2 that way and then use a knife to cut the bunch at the same point. This ensure that you get only the tender part.

Spread on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil or butter. Toss to make sure they are all coated. You can use a lot of oil or just a little, it's up to you. Sometimes I just spray them with an oil spray. Then season with salt and pepper, and pop into a 375 degree oven. Check them after 10 minutes (or when you can smell them cooking) I like to leave them in a little longer until they are brown and crunchy on the edges.

Use the same basic concept to roast any veggies. Last week I did a broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini, and red onion mixture. It was divine! To jazz it up you could also sprinkle some grated parmesan onto the veggies before or after roasting.

Check back in Monday for weigh-in!