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I don't like dishes that are strongly-flavored with fennel - we once made a slow-cooked pulled-pork recipe that was ruined for me by the fennel seed flavoring. So it surprised me that I really do like fennel root itself, when it's roasted with other vegetables. The picture above is of Ina Garten's Roasted Winter Vegetables; after we made it the first time, we did it again using carrots, parsnips, potatoes and - Fennel! We really liked it, a very warming Autumn-Winter side dish. Here is the original recipe, and you can switch out veggies as you like: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/roasted-winter-vegetables-recipe.htmlAs an aside,...

I've always liked canned beets, pickled or plain, and usually in salads; but I've never cooked or eaten fresh beets before. I decided to try a simple roasted beet for my first experiment. Beets peel better if they're roasted first, so I didn't peel them at the start. Cut off the stem ends, leaving about an inch for a 'handle' (what to do with the greens will be a later project). Also, cut off any long, skinny root, and then wash the beets well - dirt seems to especially collect up near the stem. Place the cleaned and dried beats...