In my quest to make cooking Christmas dinner less stressful, I have created this Easy Christmas Vegetable Traybake. Roasting the parsnips, carrots and sprouts all together in one tray means you can relax and have a glass of bubbly instead of juggling pots and pans like a mad thing this Christmas.
Cooking Christmas dinner can be extremely stressful, can’t it? Often it is the turkey that causes the stress – and if that’s the issue for you, do check out this post I wrote last year: 20 Simple Tips To Take The Stress Out Of Cooking Your Christmas Turkey.
20 Simple Tips To Take The Stress Out Of Cooking Your Christmas Turkey
Or sometimes it’s just juggling so many different dishes. If that is what drives you a bit bonkers, I have written a helpful Christmas Dinner Time Plan and Shopping List to help you juggle everything.
Christmas Dinner Time Plan and Shopping List
But for me the thing I often find most stressful is the veg. The turkey is resting happily, the potatoes are merrily doing their thing in the oven and just when it would be nice to have a sit down and a glass of something bubbly, there I am stressing about the sprouts.
It’s partly my fault, of course. I always plan to make far too many different ones and then it’s a mad juggling act trying to find space for everything on the hob (in amidst the bread sauce, the gravy and the cranberry sauce) and desperately trying to ensure they all cook at the same time and none of them go cold. Then of course inevitably it’s the turkey and roasties that are devoured and the veggies remain hardly touched as everyone has always stuffed themselves silly with nibbles earlier.
So this year I’m going to simplify what I do dramatically and make my life considerably easy peasier…by making my Easy Christmas Vegetable Traybake!
I’ve decided that the veg I really care about at Christmas are roast parsnips, sprouts and carrots. And instead of juggling pans on the hob, I’m going to roast all of my veg together in one tray.
Roast parsnips are a firm Christmas favourite, of course, and roast carrots are lovely too, but have you tried roast sprouts yet? They are amazing! Just chop them in half and chuck then in the tray for the last 15 minutes and they will be perfectly cooked, plus roasting gives sprouts a gorgeous nutty caramelised taste that is so much nicer than boiled or steamed sprouts.
So then on Christmas Day these veggies can be popped in the oven at the same time as the roast potatoes and at the same temperature, whilst the turkey is resting and I can relax and have that glass of bubbly, instead of rushing round like a mad thing before lunch. Bliss!
Being so simple to make (not to mention CHEAP!), these easy roast vegetables don’t have to be reserved for Christmas day. They would be fabulous with a Sunday roast or even midweek for a bit of a pre-Christmas treat.
They would go brilliantly with my Gin Brined Chicken or Easy Mulled Wine Christmas Ham, for example. Or to make a fabulously easy vegetarian Christmas Dinner why not pair them with my Cranberry, Feta and Quinoa Stuffed Butternut Squash.
Cranberry, Feta and Quinoa Stuffed Butternut Squash
Of course if you wanted to go the whole hog and make your Christmas Dinner really easy peasy, you could make my Easy Peasy Christmas Turkey Traybake: an entire roast turkey dinner for 4 in one tray – yes really!
Easy Peasy Christmas Turkey Traybake
If you like this recipe…
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Easy Christmas Vegetable Traybake
Ingredients
- 500 g parsnips cut into batons
- 500 g carrots cut into batons
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- Salt and pepper
- A few sprigs of thyme, rosemary, sage or a mixture plus extra for garnish
- 250 g sprouts halved lengthways
Instructions
- Pre-heat your oven to 220C / 200C fan / gas mark 7 / 425F.
- Peel and chop the parsnips and carrots into batons and place in a baking tray. Drizzle with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil and sprinkle over salt, pepper and whichever herbs you are using.
- Mix everything together to ensure the veggies are evenly coated (I use my hands but you can use a spoon if you prefer) and put the baking tray into the oven. Roast for 30 minutes.
- After the 30 minutes, remove the vegetables from the oven and add the sprouts. Toss everything together again (this time definitely use a spoon!), ensuring none of the carrots are parsnips are sticking, and return the baking tray to the oven for a further 15 minutes.
- Serve scattered with more herbs.
Notes
Get More Easy Peasy Christmas Recipes here…
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Mandy says
Love this Eb and no, I’ve never tried roast sprouts but I definitely want to. I have a few ideas for sprouts rumbling around in my head but don’t know whether I’ll make them happen this year or not. I do think with a little love the sprout can be pretty tasty – but boiled sprouts can just be a bit grim! Thanks for linking up to #CookBlogShare
Eb Gargano says
Oh you really need to try roast sprouts, Mandy – they are so good! I panfried some sprouts in a little butter today for my lunch (AKA recipe development) and they were totally gorgeous too…I don’t mind boiled sprouts so long as they are only very lightly cooked, but I can think of much better things to do with them!! Thanks for your lovely comments 🙂 Eb x
Nico @ yumsome says
Roasted veggies are the best, aren’t they? I adore them. Plus, I love that you can just bung ’em in the oven, and forget about them until they’re done. Do you ever roast beetroot too? It’s wonderful!
Eb Gargano says
Oh they really are! They taste so much better than boiled ones and yes, I love that bung ’em in the oven thing. I LOVE roasted beetroot. I haven’t done it for ages though, really must do it again soon. It is so gooood! Eb x
Rachel George says
Always roast my carrots and parsnips like this but have not added sprouts before. Well worth trying! #brillblogposts
Eb Gargano says
Oooh definitely – roast sprouts are sooo good and it is so easy just to chuck ’em in on top of the roast parsnips and carrots for the last 15 minutes! Do let me know how you get on if you try it! Eb x
Midgie says
Your so right sprouts, carrots & parsnips are the essential veggies for the big day, everyone loves sprouts in this house so they will eat them however they come but I LOVE the idea of traybaking them! The only other essential veggies for us are a mixed peas, green beans and baby broad beans in a minted dairyfree butter dressing – you can make it in the microwave! (but shhhh dont tell my lot – they think I slave over it!!) x
Eb Gargano says
Traybaking the sprouts works so well. In fact, I have yet to find anything that doesn’t taste better traybaked!! 😉 I love the sound of your ‘fancy’ vegetable dish. I really love dishes that look and taste fancy, but are in actual fact a total doddle to make – well that’s pretty much the premise for this blog, isn’t it!! 😀 Thanks for your kind comments. Eb x
Angela / Only Crumbs Remain says
What a fab idea Eb. I love roasted carrot and parsnips (and of course potatoes!) but have never tried roasting sprouts. I’ll definitely have to give that a go. We had an early Christmas dinner with my parents yesterday (they’re with my brother this year) and they chose to buy a couple of mixed bags of prepared veg from M&S which was just steamed on the hob using just one pan. I’ll have to suggest this to mum because it’s a great idea.
Angela x
Eb Gargano says
Oh you really need to try roasting sprouts – they taste so much better than boiled/steamed ones and are even easier to do. Plus that’s one less hob space needed. Those mixed bags from M&S are really useful, aren’t they? And I just LOVE pretend Christmases. We have one with my parents every year as we usually stay at home on Christmas Day (and Mr G’s parents come to us) and then we go to my parents on Boxing Day and have a pretend Christmas with then, I love it as it makes Christmas last a bit longer and you don’t get that sad ‘Christmas is over’ feeling when you go to bed on Christmas Day (yes I realise that makes me sound like I’m about 8, but I am such a kid when it comes to Christmas!!) Eb x
Kirsty Hijacked By Twins says
This will certainly make cooking vegetables much easier on Christmas day. Keep and eye out for my Food Round-up tomorrow on BritMums 🙂 Thank you for sharing with #CookBlogShare x
Eb Gargano says
I really will. We are going for a very easy peasy Christmas this year – I am looking forward to relaxing rather than juggling pots and pans in the kitchen!! And I am really looking forward to hardly any washing up!! Eb x
Charlotte Oates says
I’m planning on roasting my Christmas veg too, for starters it’s easier, and I always thing roasted veg has far more flavour and texture than boiled. I’m going to pop my sprouts in the Turkey tray though as I love the flavour it gives them.
Eb Gargano says
Agree totally. But I’ve never considered putting the sprouts in with the turkey before – that’s got to be tried!! Eb x
Corina Blum says
I love roasted vegetables at any time but especially at Christmas! These look delicious. Thanks for sharing with #CookOnceEatTwice x
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Corina! Yes me too – I love how roasting sort of concentrates the flavour and brings out the sweetness, plus it brings a sort of smoky, nuttiness to the sprouts – YUM YUM!! Eb x
Jacqui Bellefontaine says
Oh yes the vegetables are definately the most stressful part of the Christmas dinner as it all comes down to timings. Luckily for me I have 6 gas rings which helps but even so . I love this solution nice and easy peasy and I love roasted vegetables too.
Eb Gargano says
Thanks, Jacqui :-). Oh I’d love to have 6 rings – I only have 4 and it’s always a bit of a juggle!! Eb x
Michelle Frank | Flipped-Out Food says
I really do love roasted sprouts, but I’m unfortunately alone in my family in that regard! I make them for myself anyway, and this is such a beautiful, hassle-free way to deliver roast veggie goodness! I’ll have the kiddos save the sprouts for me. 😉
Eb Gargano says
Oh no really? I can’t understand why anyone wouldn’t like roasted sprouts – they are sooo delicious!! Still at least doing them like this means you can just lob a few in with the rest of your roast veggies – nice and simple! Eb x
No stress Christmas says
I tried this ahead of hosting my first ever Christmas and it was delicious! It says suitable for freezing on the recipe; at what point do I freeze and how do I cook it afterwards? I am a complete amateur and it is also my first Christmas as a mum so I want to be able to enjoy the whole day with as little stress as possible. Thank you for this amazing recipe.
Eb Gargano says
Yay! I am so happy to hear that. You can freeze this dish after it is cooked and cooled. To reheat, simply place on a roasting tray in a hot oven (180 fan ideally, but it can be a bit flexible if you have other things in the oven at a different temperature already) for 10 minutes or until piping hot. I would say, just for info, the texture won’t be quite as good after freezing, although it totally works, if you want best results I’d cook from fresh on the day. But what I do is prep the carrots and sprouts the night before (but not the parsnips as they go brown) which makes this super easy to make on Christmas day! Either way, I hope you have a fabulous first Christmas as a mum! Eb 🙂
No stress Christmas says
Thank you! I will prep the carrots and sprouts the night before as you suggest.
Eb Gargano says
No problem. Always happy to help! Eb 🙂
Judith says
Today’s Sunday lunch is going to have a bit of a Christmas flavour as I’ve bought parsnips and sprouts as well as the usual carrots, swede and potatoes (I forgot cauliflower, but we’ll cope). I absolutely love roast parsnips but can never get them right, so I came to your site for inspiration. I was just about to follow the recipe for parsnips by themselves, but then saw this Christmas traybake. What’s not to like about it? I can ditch the steamer for the day and just cook everything in the oven. I can’t wait until lunchtime!
Eb Gargano says
Yay! I am so happy to hear this. Thank you for taking the time to leave this lovely review – and especially for the 5* rating! 😀