Traditional Greek Recipes: Briam (Roasted Vegetables)

Greek Briam takes roasted vegetables to a whole new level of delicious. You need just a few simple pantry ingredients, but the Greek flavours from spices, fresh garlic and parsley make all the difference.

Briam is thin roasted vegetable casserole, typically starring, potatoes, zucchini, red onions, and tomatoes. Pulling it together is a generous drizzle of quality extra virgin olive oil.

Ingredients

• 1 ¼ lb/ 570 g gold potatoes (about 3 medium-size potatoes), peeled and thinly sliced into rounds (about ⅛-inch thick)
• 1 ¼ lb/ 570 g zucchini squash (2 to 3 zucchini), thinly sliced into rounds (about ¼-inch thick)
• Salt and pepper
• 2 tsp/ 3.6 g dried oregano
• scant 1 tsp/1.2 g dried rosemary 
• ½ cup/ 35 g chopped fresh parsley
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• Early Harvest Greek extra virgin olive oil
• 1 28-oz/ 794 g canned diced tomatoes with juice (no-salt added organic tomatoes are recommended)
• 1 large red onion or 2 smaller red onions, thinly sliced into rounds (if large, you’ll want to cut the onion in half first, and then slice)

Method

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Place a rack in the middle.
2. Place sliced potatoes and zucchini in a large mixing bowl. Season with kosher salt, pepper, oregano, and rosemary. Add fresh parsley, garlic, and a generous drizzle extra virgin olive oil. Toss to make sure the vegetables are well coated with the EVOO and spices.
3. Grab a large round pan on skillet (I used an 11-inch oven safe pan. See notes for more options.) Pour ½ of the canned diced tomatoes in and spread to cover the bottom of the pan.
4. Arrange the seasoned potatoes, zucchini, and sliced onions in the pan in rows (simply going around the shape of the pan and alternating.)
5. If you have any of the extra virgin olive oil and garlic mixture left in the mixing bowl, pour that all over the veggies, then top with the remaining diced tomatoes from your can.
6. Cover the pan with foil (tent foil a bit so it is not touching the veggies). Bake in 400 degrees F heated-oven for 45 minutes. Take pan out briefly to carefully remove foil, then place back in oven,  uncovered, and roast for another 30-40 minutes or until the veggies are soft and charred and most of the liquid has evaporated. (ovens do vary, so pay attention and check as needed.)
7. Remove from oven. Serve warm or at room temperature with an added generous drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. (see suggestions for to serve along.)

Source: The Mediterranean Dish