Layered Sweet Potato, Squash & Carrot Bake with Cranberry-Honey Drizzle

Oven should be preheated to 400°F (200°C) and a medium baking dish should be lightly greased with olive oil.

Remove the skin from the sweet potatoes and the carrots, and then cut the sweet potatoes, the carrots and the yellow squash into thin, even rounds. Make the slices about ⅛ of an inch thick so that the vegetables cook uniformly.

Take the olive oil, garlic powder, dried thyme, paprika, salt, and black pepper and mix them in a small bowl.

Put the slices of sweet potato, squash, and carrot into a big bowl. Pour the olive oil which has been seasoned over the vegetables and mix them gently until all the slices are covered.

Place the slices of vegetable in rows that overlap one another in the baking dish which has already been prepared, making sure that you alternate between sweet potato, squash and carrot to produce attractive layers.

Put the baking dish directly over the foil and bake it for 30 minutes. Then carefully take off the foil and continue baking for an additional 15 to 25 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender and the edges have turned a light golden colour. The cooking time will depend on the thickness of the slices.

In the meantime, mix the cranberries, honey, water, lemon juice, the optional lemon zest, and a little salt together in a small saucepan.

Heat the cranberry mixture over medium heat until it reaches a gentle simmer, and cook it for 8 to 12 minutes, stirring from time to time, until the cranberries have softened and started to burst and the sauce has thickened a little. Then, gently crush a few of the berries with the back of a spoon, keeping some whole for texture.

Take the vegetable bake out of the oven and let it stand for 5 minutes. Then spoon the cranberry-honey drizzle over the warm vegetables, making sure that some of the sauce settles between the layers.

Sprinkle with finely chopped fresh parsley and serve it warm, and if you want you may have the extra cranberry-honey sauce on the side.