Roasted beets and potatoes with almond-coconut sauce makes the most of fall vegetables

This week, I'm all about celebrating root vegetables, including farmers' market beets and carrots of all colors and small, fresh spuds from my friend Anne's Anchorage garden. Anne brought me some organic yellow Finn potatoes. Carefully stored in a paper bag, she gave strict instructions to keep them muddied and in the dark until ready to cook and serve.

"They will thank you for such TLC and your taste buds will thank them," she assured us. We tossed them into a heavy cast-iron skillet set over a charcoal fire to steam and smoke until just tender and blistered. Once we added in some good salted butter to get browned and nutty, the tiny, unassuming globes came into their own and only needed a topping of fresh herbs and some sea salt flakes.

Here, in this late-summer, early-fall dish, the beautiful potatoes also complement beets and carrots. Beets have shed their school-cafeteria outsider reputation; we have options now beyond vacuum-packed bulbs or the small, lifeless cubes from a tin can. Roasted is my favorite way to eat them, but I also love them grated raw into salads and even whipped into chocolate cake batter to add moisture and sweetness.

A bit of acidity brightens rich root vegetables, but I also love making this thick, nutty coconut sauce enhanced with either Spanish olive oil-fried Marcona almonds or roasted peanuts or walnuts. Any extra sauce can be whisked into vinaigrettes, spread onto sandwiches or served alongside fish or meat. Serve as a first course or a meatless main by adding in other roasted veg and sautéed beet greens and grilled garlic-rubbed bread.

Roasted beets and potatoes with almond-coconut sauce

Makes 4 to 6 servings as a first course

For the vegetables:

1 pound red and orange beets, scrubbed of any excess dirt

5 ounces potatoes (about 5 small potatoes), scrubbed of any excess dirt

5 ounces carrots (about 3 small), trimmed

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more for garnish

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

For the almond-coconut sauce:

Makes about 2 cups

4 ounces Marcona almonds or roasted peanuts or walnuts

1 ounce (4 tablespoons) unsweetened flaked coconut

1 1/2 ounces (about 1/2 bunch) fresh cilantro leaves and stems

Scant 1/2 teaspoon fine salt

1 Fresno chile, red jalapeño, or serrano chile, stem (and seeds, if desired) removed

1 small ripe but firm tomato

1 large clove garlic, peeled

2 tablespoons white wine vinegar or fresh lemon or lime juice

3/4 cup canned coconut milk, shaken

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Garnishes: thinly sliced onion; sea salt flakes; fresh herbs such as cilantro, parsley, mint

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Rinse beets of any excess dirt. Trim leaves (if fresh, save for another use). Cut beets into halves or quarters (of similar size so they cook evenly) and place on a large piece of aluminum foil. Drizzle with olive oil and season with some salt and pepper. Wrap the beets tightly with foil and place on a sheet pan. Place in oven and set timer for 35 minutes.

Cut potatoes and carrots into similar size shapes and spread out on a sheet pan; drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and pepper. After the beets have been cooking for 35 minutes, add potatoes and carrots to oven and roast, along with the beets, another 20 minutes or so. Check potatoes and carrots, as they might be ready before beets. Vegetables are tender when they can be pierced easily with a knife point; remove both sheet pans from oven and let cool.

While vegetables are roasting, make the sauce: Heat a skillet over medium-high heat and add the nuts and coconut and cook, stirring occasionally, about 4 to 5 minutes until fragrant and lightly toasted. Add toasted nuts and coconut to the bowl of a food processor; add remaining sauce ingredients and pulse until thick and well blended, but not pureed. Taste and add more salt or vinegar, as needed; set aside. Depending on the heat of your chile, you can tone down the heat with a bit more coconut milk or add some freshly ground black pepper if not hot enough.

When beets are cool enough to handle, peel, discarding peel and cut into wedges or slices. Using the back of a large spoon or a spatula, spread some of the sauce over a large serving platter. Top with beets, potatoes and carrots and garnish with olive oil, some flake salt, thinly sliced onion and fresh herbs. If you have really good tomatoes, add a few of those as well. Serve with extra sauce, if desired. NOTE: Any extra sauce can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 4 days.

Kim Sunée is the bestselling author of "Trail of Crumbs: Hunger, Love, and the Search for Home" and "A Mouthful of Stars." Her new book, "Everyday Korean," is out now and available at Barnes and Noble and Amazon. For more food and travel, visit kimsunee.com and instagram/kimsunee.

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