This recipe is great for a rainy day. It's well worth the effort, with the sweetness of roasted apple and squash and the spicy flavor of parsnip and fennel. It's delicious with a cheese toast made on crusty whole grain bread!

Ingredients:

• 1 medium parsnip, peeled and diced into small pieces
• 1 medium bulb fennel, tops removed, cored and sliced
• 2 small carrots, peeled and diced into 1 inch cubes
• 1 medium red onion, peeled and sliced
• 2 small winter squash of any variety (butternut, ambercup, delicata) peeled and diced into 1 inch cubes (about 4 cups)
• 1 small apple, cored and diced (sweet variety such as gala or macintosh)
• 1 small bulb celeriac or celery root, peeled and diced (about 1/2 cup)
• 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil or butter
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 2 large cloves garlic, peeled and minced
• 6 cups vegetable stock
• kosher salt and ground black pepper

Method:

• Preheat conventional oven to 400 degrees and toss first 6 ingredients one at a time in olive oil, seasoning with salt and pepper
• Arrange vegetables separately on sheet trays, with varieties of squash, celeriac and parsnips on one, apple, onion and fennel on the other
• Roast in oven for 30 to 40 minutes until vegetables are soft and slightly carmelized, remove from oven (if parsnips and carrots are not quite done, that's okay)
• Add olive oil or butter to a large saucepan over medium high heat
• Saute yellow onions until translucent and beginning to carmelize, about 10 minutes
• Add garlic and saute for one minute more or until fragrant
• Add all of the roasted vegetables and vegetable stock, bring to a boil
• Reduce heat to a simmer and cook 20 minutes until all vegetables are completely soft
• Allow to cool and puree with a submersible blender or standing blender. Add more stock for a thinner consistency. Season with salt and pepper and enjoy!

Serves 6