The “sauce” of Merguez and roasted vegetables would work with
any short pasta, but the foglie are leaf-shaped and just like
Fall leaves…multi-colored. I love the flavor of the
caramelized roasted vegetables. It’s a perfect Fall & Winter
dish.
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Serves 4-6
ingredients
directions
Preheat the oven to 400°F/200°C
Line lipped baking sheets and/or cake tins with foil for
easy clean up. I do separate pans as follows so that I don’t
overcook any of the vegetables:
Brussels sprouts & mushrooms
Beets (I actually wrap the beets with the foil)
Pumpkin or squash cubes
Toss each of the vegetables with a drizzle of good olive oil
and some sea salt & freshly ground pepper. Additional seasoning
for the pumpkin – drizzle of maple syrup and thyme.
Roast until each type of vegetable is fork tender, but still
has some crunch to it. No mushy veggies, please, so check the
oven after 15 minutes and remove as they are ready. This step
can take up to 40 minutes or they might surprise you and all be
ready at 20.
In the meantime, get the water boiling in a large Dutch oven
and don’t forget to add salt once the water comes to a boil.
Let the beets cool a bit before peeling. I cut them into
chunks too so all the veggies were roughly the same size. Put
all the veggies in a large bowl and cover with foil. Set aside
while the pasta cooks al dente.
While the water is boiling and once the veggies are cooked,
broil the Merguez sausages (5 minutes per side if they’re
large, less if they’re the skinny kind I remember from
Montreal). Slice into 1” rounds and add to the veggies.
Once the pasta is cooked (5-7 minutes), drain and add to the
sausage and veggie mix. Toss and add more seasonings to taste.
This is a very dry sauce with way more meat and vegetables than
pasta. Merguez tend to be very spicy so I would taste before
adding more salt or pepper. A sprinkle of thyme is always
lovely though.
I served this with a salad of crunchy Romaine Hearts and a
tangy vinaigrette.