Roasted Harvest Vegetables with Maple Agrodolce Sauce

This roasted vegetable medley is an absolute must on my Thanksgiving table. It has the best of the season: fennel, Brussels sprouts, carrots, and sweet roasted grapes, all tossed with a maple agrodolce sauce with lemon zest and a whole head of roasted garlic. Agrodolce is an Italian sweet-and-sour sauce — “agro” means sour and “dolce” means sweet. It’s traditionally made with sugar and vinegar, but maple syrup gives it a distinctly fall spin. It’s sticky, tangy, a little sweet, and perfectly glazes all of those delicious roasted vegetables.

How this Agrodolce recipe fits AIP and Paleo

This recipe doesn’t need any swaps to fit into an AIP or Paleo meal plan. All of the ingredients are compliant as written. There is a little natural sugar from the maple syrup, but a small amount goes a long way in the agrodolce sauce.

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The vegetables won’t take too long to prep. Peel the carrots and cut them into 2-inch pieces. Trim the ends of the Brussels sprouts, but leave them whole (unless they’re really large; then halve them). If the fennel bulbs have come with the stalks that look like celery ribs, cut those off and trim the dry end at the base of the bulb. Then, cut through the core into wedges. I like to keep the core intact so that the layers of the fennel stay together. Toss the vegetables in oil and give them a generous sprinkle of salt.

Then, arrange the vegetables on a prepared sheet pan, baking dish or shallow roasting pan. Here, I’ve oiled the pan, but you can also use parchment paper to prevent sticking. Right before you put this in the oven, trim the top off of a head of garlic, rub a little oil on the exposed cloves and give it a pinch of salt, then lay it cut-side-down on the pan to roast alongside the vegetables. Roast at 425° for around 30 minutes, or until you can pierce a Brussels sprout straight through easily with a fork.

While the vegetables roast, make the agrodolce sauce. Agrodolce sauce is a combination of vinegar and sugar, simmered and reduced until it’s thickened into a glaze. It’s finished by adding garlic and something tart or briny, so you have this balanced sweet-sour-tart sauce. I like to use red wine vinegar and sticky sweet balsamic along with a dark amber maple syrup. Heat them together in a small saucepan over medium-low heat and simmer until the sauce is reduced by almost two-thirds. Aim for about a quarter cup of reduced sauce, which should take around 30 minutes.

When the vegetables come out of the oven, remove the head of garlic and add the clusters of grapes, then put the pan back in the oven to finish for another 10 minutes or so. That’s all the time you’ll need for the skins of the grapes to soften, brown just a bit, and for the grapes to warm through.

Then, scoop all of the soft, roasted garlic out of the garlic skins or husks. Discard the husks and mash the garlic into a paste. Add the garlic and a teaspoon of lemon zest to the agrodolce sauce.

Transfer all of the vegetables to a platter, pluck the grapes from the stems, and toss everything with the agrodolce sauce. Use as much as you need to fully coat the vegetables, and serve anything that’s left alongside.    

This is exactly the kind of dish that you’re looking for at Thanksgiving — rustic but little elegant at the same time. The vegetables are roasted, the grapes add little pops of sweetness, and that garlic and maple glaze brings so much flavor but it’s surprisingly light. You might think your guests are going to go home raving about the turkey, but really, they’re going to be texting you for the agrodolce sauce recipe.

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Roasted Harvest Vegetables with Maple Agrodolce Sauce

5 from 1 vote

Fennel, Brussels sprouts, carrots and grapes are roasted until caramelized, then tossed with a maple agrodolce sauce made with red wine vinegar, balsamic, lemon zest and a whole head of roasted garlic.

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Prep Time:15 minutes mins

Cook Time:45 minutes mins

Total Time:1 hour hr

Servings: 6 people

Author: Christina Marche

Ingredients

For the roasted vegetables

• 1 lb Brussels sprouts, trimmed, halving any very large sprouts
• 3 large carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
• 2 fennel bulbs, stalks removed, bottoms trimmed, cores intact, cut into wedges
• 2 tbsp olive oil or avocado oil, plus more as needed
• 1 tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste
• 1 whole head garlic
• 2 cups red seedless grapes on the vine, cut into small clusters

For the maple agrodolce

• ½ cup red wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 2½ tbsp maple syrup
• 1 tsp finely grated lemon zest
• Kosher salt to taste

Instructions

• Heat the oven to 425°.
• Toss the Brussels sprouts, carrots, and fennel with the oil and 1 teaspoon salt, adding a little more oil if needed to coat. Arrange in a single layer on a prepared baking sheet.
• Cut across the top third of the garlic head to expose the cloves. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt, brush the cut surface with a little additional oil, and place cut-side down on the baking sheet.
• Roast for 30 to 35 minutes, until the vegetables are browned and you can easily pierce a Brussels sprout with a fork.
• Add the grape clusters to the baking sheet and roast for 10 minutes more, until the grapes are warm and just beginning to soften. Remove the grapes from the stems.
• While the vegetables roast, combine the red wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar, and maple syrup in a small saucepan. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium-low heat and cook, stirring regularly, until reduced to ¼ cup.
• When the vegetables are finished roasting, squeeze the roasted garlic cloves from their skins and roughly mash the cloves with a fork.
• Stir the mashed garlic and lemon zest into the reduced agrodolce. Taste and season with a pinch of salt, if needed.
• Drizzle most of the maple agrodolce over the roasted vegetables and gently toss to coat. Transfer to a serving platter and serve warm with the remaining agrodolce alongside.

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: AIP, AIP Modified, Paleo