If you are trying to encourage the picky eaters in your life to eat their greens, then you’ll love this roasted broccoli side dish that’ll leave everyone coming back for more!
Broccoli is great for its anti-inflammatory properties. It provides us with numerous antioxidants, minerals, vitamins and fibre – great for our cardiovascular system, protection from certain cancers and digestive support.
Did you know? One cup of broccoli has the same amount of vitamin C as an orange? Aside from vitamins A and C, broccoli is also an excellent source of iron and potassium. The more intense the colour the higher the nutritional value of the broccoli.
It protects our gut microbiota (the healthy bacteria in your gut) which is very important for people with digestive disorders. With this said however, most of my patients who come to me with digestive problems often can’t tolerate eating raw cruciferous vegetables like broccoli. It causes a lot of bloating and gas. In order to combat this and still get the nutritional boost broccoli has to offer, simply steam or cook it to make it more easily digestible!
One of my favourite ways to save time in the kitchen is roasting a sheet pan of veg (check out this recipe here: Rainbow Roasted Veg). But, I wanted to try something new last night… and this side of broccoli was simply delicious and super easy to make! Packed full of flavour and crunch, it paired rather well with my roasted lemon and ginger chicken! Four steps? Seven ingredients? Seriously? What more could you ask for?
Ingredients
4 cups of raw washed broccoli
Juice of ½ lemon
½ lemon thinly slices
¼ cup olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
Pinch of ground cayenne pepper
Coarse sea salt
Garnish options: pine nuts, almonds, fresh chillis, red pepper flakes
Method:
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Line your baking sheet with baking paper or use Spray n Cook.
In a large mixing bowl combine all ingredients to coat the broccoli.
Bake for 20 minutes. About half way through stir everything around making sure the broccoli is cooked on both sides (you can sneak in a taste here to add more flavouring if you’d like – remember to go easy on the salt).
Once the broccoli is crisp on the outside take out of the oven, add your garnish and serve immediately, or if you’re making it ahead of time allow it to cool before putting into an airtight container for storage in the refrigerator.
P.S. Don’t forget to make extra for lunch tomorrow!
Shani
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