A New Restaurant Experience

You've heard me say it before, I love trying new things.  From restaurants to fashion, nothing scares me anymore.  Just call me adventurous.
Last week I ended up going on a much needed date night with my lovely, and very pregnant friend JC.  Because it wasn't that long ago, that I too, was 'with child.'  I vividly remember never knowing what I wanted to eat until 5 minutes beforehand.  Oh, and then I needed whatever 'it' was 5 minutes ago.  I was difficult to say the least.  JC - she's easy.  Still, the venue choice was up to her, and her pick?  Tapas.  Perfect!  I'm a newbie to the world of tapas.  This was going to be my first experience with a restaurant of this nature.  For those of you unfamiliar with this concept.  It's basically 'small plates,' ideal for sharing, and you order a bunch of everything.  Our table was eclectic to say the least.  We had a trio of dips, seared ahi tuna, truffle fries, gnocchi, chicken wings, and my personal favourite roasted root vegetables. 
Now I'm already a sucker when it comes to beets and carrots.  The thought of them roasted and then glazed in maple syrup makes for an exciting time.  So when I saw this was on the menu, immediately, I knew this was something I'd be all over.  Even more exciting, they were golden beets.  I've never had golden beets before.  They were delicious!

Can you say recreation?  Recreation!  (That was easy.)  Oh, with one minor adjustment...do you think I could get my hands on 'golden beets?'  No dice.  Looks like it's the regular red ones for us tonight.  Oh well.  Either way it was delicious.  Bold in color and scarfed down faster than you can say 'maple syrup.'

Roasted Root Vegetables w/ Maple Glaze

Ingredients:
4 medium beets, washed (root end & stems intact)
16 small carrots, washed
2 Tbsp olive oil, divided
4 Tbsp butter, divided
2 Tbsp maple syrup, divided
2 Tbsp brown sugar, divided

Method:
Preheat oven to 375F.  Line two baking sheets with aluminum foil.  Set aside.
Place beets on one prepared sheet, drizzle with 1 tablespoon of olive oil.  Cover with second sheet of aluminum foil, pinch sides closed.  Roast for 60-75 minutes depending on size, turning once
On second prepared sheet, arrange carrots in single layer, drizzle with remaining tablespoon of olive oil.  Roast for 20-30 minutes, turning once.
Remove vegetables from oven. 
Once cool enough to handle, cut off root and stems from beets, and remove skins.  Cut in quarters, then in half again (half moons)
In non-stick skillet, melt 2 tablespoons of butter.  Once melted add 1 tablespoon of each brown sugar and maple syrup to the pan.  Add in carrots, cook 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Remove carrots from pan, and repeat process with beets.  (Cooking the vegetables separately ensures the beets won't dye the carrots a red color, alternatively this can be done in two separate pans)

Serve warm.  Enjoy!
Serves 4