Baked Potato with Moroccan-Spiced Root Vegetables

This was a really tasty dinner. I found the recipe by way of Little Foodies, who created it for the Pimp My Potato challenge at The Great Big Vegetable Challenge, though of course my version came out a bit different. I couldn't find any celeriac and the parsnips only came in a 5lb bag (and since I use perhaps two a year that seemed like a bad way to buy one), so my version was as follows:

2 to 2-1/2 cups of vegetables, comprised of the following items:
- 2 garlic cloves (minced)
- red onion (I used half a small one)
- 2 carrots
- 1 small turnip
- rutabaga (aka Swede) until the measuring cup was full

Dice them all up to approximately the same size - they're meant to be about 1cm cubed, but I think mine came out a bit smaller. Drizzle over with a good bit of olive oil and add as much of the following mixture as you think you need and then stir to coat evenly:

Ras al-Hanut (found here, but much cut down, since I knew I wouldn't use it all).
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp turmeric
a pinch each of freshly ground black pepper, nutmeg, cardamom, and paprika

I only used about half of this mixture, but I probably could have used all of it - I forgot that adding tomatoes would dilute the flavour a bit.

Roast the vegetables at 375F for 45 minutes or so, then stir in half a can of diced tomatoes with their juice, roast an additional 10 minutes. Taste and add a bit of salt and more pepper if necessary.

Serve atop a lovely baked potato and gorge yourself on the delicious flavours.


I actually ate this along with a chicken breast that I'd done like Shake and Bake chicken (but made by me instead of the company), which is hiding in the cut-off portion of the picture because I forgot to put a bit of fat on top, so it didn't brown well and looked a bit bland (though it tasted good). In the end, I didn't eat more than the first two bites because the potato was too good and too filling, so I sliced it up and put it in a sandwich for lunch tomorrow at work.

The leftover vegetables have been refrigerated and I suspect that they might make an appearance on pasta tomorrow (with the other half can of tomatoes and some more spices).