A side dish that works as a meal...

A lot of traditional Thanksgiving food is either not vegetarian or not clean eating friendly.

Sweet potatoes with marshmallows, for example, might be vegetarian, but if you're trying to keep it clean, you might have to pass those along to the next person when they come around. The same goes for that all time favorite: green bean casserole. Corn pudding. Nah-uh.

So you can't eat the turkey, for obvious reasons and most of the sides will have to be passed. What does that leave you. A plate of salad? That is just not going to cut it on National Gluttony Day.

I've solved that problem for myself by putting together a huge platter of roasted vegetables to put out on the table. Since everyone else is gorging themselves on the plethora of options I don't eat, there will be plenty for me.

I start out this recipe with a trip to the farmers market, but if that's not an option for you, just head to the produce aisle. The selection might be a bit smaller, but you'll get what you need. The key is to find veggies in a variety of textures and colors...the more colors the better to get as many nutrients as you can squeeze into the dish.

My trip last weekend yielded some good choices. I have Brussels Sprouts, carrots in a variety of colors, a couple of different kinds of onions, some turnips, some mushrooms and three different colors of sweet peppers. And, since I was shopping at the St. Augustine Farmers Market, I picked up a bottle of Datil pepper sauce made by a local grower.

Datil peppers can be grown anywhere in the US, I am told, but St. Augustine is the datil peppers capital of the world. If you're not familiar with these gems, they are hot like a habanero pepper, but have a sweet, almost fruity flavor. I tiny bit of sauce goes a long way.

So, once you have gathered up your veggies, clean them and start piling them up in a roasting pan that has been coated with olive oil. Pour a little oil over the top (I put my oil in one of those plastic squirt bottles designed for ketchup) and...

Roasted Winter Veggies

Winter root vegetables of various textures and colors (enough to fill up a roasting pan)

Olive Oil

3 tablespoons of fresh cilantro, minced

2 tablespoons of fresh oregano, minced

1 tablespoon of datil pepper sauce (or more if you're feeling spicy)

Salt and pepper to taste

• Squirt a bit of olive oil on the bottom of the pan.
• Pile in the veggies (cut them up to bite sized pieces, if you like).
• Squirt a bit more olive oil on the top and mix the veggies up until they are well coated.
• Mix 2 tablespoons of oil, the cilantro, the oregano and the datil sauce and pour this mixture over the veggies. Again mix them all up to coat.
• Sprinkle on some salt and pepper. Mix again.
• Put the pan in a 250º oven and roast for an hour. Take out and mix again.
• Cover with foil and put the pan back in the oven for another hour or until the veggies are all fork-tender.

Vegan.