Roasted Broccoli with Almonds and Lemon

Fall means lots of delicious green things to eat, like kale, turnip greens, collards, and my favorite - broccoli! It's delicious cooked a number of different ways, as long as it is not overcooked (the cardinal sin of cooking green vegetables). But one of my very favorite ways to cook broccoli is roasting it in the oven.

Roasting broccoli brings out the slightly nutty flavor and makes even the stalks delicious. Toasted nuts add crunch and complement the nuttiness of the roasted florets. Lemon juice adds a bit of brightness. It is a perfect method for autumn cooking, because the heat from the oven will warm your kitchen and fill it with a delicious, toasty aroma.

The broccoli I used was grown locally by Frog Bottom Farm, and was $3 per pound. I got two huge crowns of the stuff for $5.50 at Richmond's own St. Stephen's Farmer's Market on Saturday.

Here's the recipe for roasted broccoli with almonds and lemon:

What you need:

• 1 crown of broccoli, cut into florets, tender stalks attached
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1/2 cup chopped raw almonds (or other nuts - hazelnuts would be really nice)
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• Salt and pepper, to taste

What to do:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Drizzle the broccoli florets with the olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to coat. Spread the broccoli florets evenly on a rimmed baking sheet and put the sheet into the oven to cook.
3. Roast the broccoli in the oven until the stalks are tender, about ten minutes. Sprinkle the chopped nuts over the broccoli about one minute before the broccoli is cooked, allowing the nuts to toast.
4. Remove the baking sheet from the oven, squeeze the lemon juice over the broccoli, and toss to coat.
5. Enjoy!

Everyone knows that broccoli is healthy, but here is some nutrition information about this vegetable, just for good measure. According to Nutrition Data, 1/2 cup of chopped, boiled broccoli has only 27 calories, but contains 84% of the recommended daily intake for vitamin C, as well as 138% of the vitamin K, 10% of the fiber, and 21% of the  folate you need for the day. As for almonds, they contain healthy amounts of fiber, vitamin E, riboflavin, magnesium, and manganese.

Enjoy!

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