Colors of Fall

I love this time of year and the colors of a Florida fall, after all they are some of my favorites.  The sights and smells fill my head and have inspired both the interior and exterior of our little bungalow.  Roasted Root Salad with warm garlic dressing, rich carmel onions, roasted pumpkin seeds, butternut squash, chocolates in creamy variations of mocha and coffee play their part.  The colors of the bungalow we first purchased have given way to the colors of fall, cool blue and yellow are slowly yielding to slate and mossy oak, cypress and cinnamon now coat the walls of the library and the living room.  Roasted butternut warms the walls of the bathroom and highlights the fireplace.
I am sure all of life's perplexing questions can be solved with a brush and the colors of fall . . .

Roasted Root Veggie Salad

Sweet Potato, sweet onion, butternut squash, delicata squash, carrots, parsnips, acorn squash all make great choices for this salad, slice all veggies in uniform thickness, rub with olive oil, sprinkle with sea salt and place in a single layer on cookie sheet, cut the tops off of 4 heads of garlic, rub cut edge with olive oil and place on cookier sheet.  Roast for 30 minutes @ 350* then flip veggies and roast another 25 minutes.  In the meantime whisk two tablespoons of olive oil, 1/2 c Rice vinegar, salt and pepper to taste in a heavy saucepan and bring to a quick simmer, then remove from heat, squeeze all 4 heads of roasted garlic into dressing and whisk.  To serve add roasted veggies to a bed of baby organic spinach, and pour warm garlic dressing over veggies, serve immediately.