Roasted Vegetable Pockets

This is an adaptation of one of our family's favorite carnivore dishes, Chicken Crescent Squares.  Since we've started the vegetarian lifestyle, I find it increasingly more difficult to look at, much less touch raw meat.  So on few occasions we do have meat, I have to take a deep breath and try to think about something else as I cut it up.  I've never been the world's biggest meat-lover, so this isn't all completely new for me.  I don't expect most vegetarians experience this same phenomenon when they initially make the switch.

So I wanted to be able to still enjoy this recipe that we loved so much.  Once I decided to remove the chicken, the cream cheese didn't seem to fit anymore either.  I basically decided I'd just roast some veggies, throw in some roasted garlic and then spoon it into the crescent squares before baking.  

It turned out great and no one even missed the chicken.  Now it was a completely different dish than the old one, but just as tasty, if not better!

Roasted Vegetable Pockets yields 4 pockets {Print this!} Ingredients:

1 small sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 leek, white and light green parts only, washed and thinly sliced

4oz button mushrooms, quartered

2 cups cauliflower, chopped into bite-size pieces

1 small red pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces

1 tube of crescent rolls (I like Trader Joe's or Immaculate Baking Co.)

1 whole head garlic

1-2 T olive oil

1 tsp tumeric

salt & pepper

2 tsp balsamic vinegar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425.  

Remove the outermost layers of skin from the head of garlic, being sure to keep the entire head in tact.  Cut off just enough of the end (top) where you can just barely see the garlic.  Tear off a small piece of aluminum foil (enough to wrap around the garlic) and place the head of garlic in the middle of the foil, drizzle with a teaspoon of olive oil, and gather the foil.  Roast in the oven for 45 minutes, or until it's squishy when you squeeze it.

Drizzle 1 T. olive oil on a large rimmed baking sheet.  Spread to coat with your hand.  Sprinkle salt and pepper generously on top of the oil.  Scatter the sweet potato cubes and cauliflower on top of the prepared pan.  Sprinkle with tumeric before baking for 15 minutes.  Remove from oven and add mushrooms, pepper, and leeks.  Toss with additional olive oil and spread veggies into a flat layer.  Bake another 10-15 minutes, or until veggies are soft.  Remove from baking sheet to a bowl and toss with balsamic vinegar.

Remove crescents from tube in one piece.  Divide along dotted lines to form 4 squares.  Seal the diagonal lines by pinching them together.  Flatten them out slightly with a rolling pin.  Spoon a heading tablespoon (or more) of the prepared veggies into the center of each square.  Bring each corner of the square to meet in the middle and pinch to seal each corner.

Bake, according to the crescent roll package directions, usually about 25 minutes, or until golden brown.

**Linking up with Bloom Designs, What's Cookin' Wednesday, Allergy Free Wednesday, Healthy 2 Day Wednesday, Healthy Vegan Friday, and What's Shakin'.