Roasted vegetables are one of life’s most perfect foods. A little bit of olive oil, salt, and pepper is all you really need to make most vegetables delicious. But there are times a person wants to be a little bit extra, and those times call for roasted vegetables that are fancy. If you have broccoli, you need to try this recipe — it’s dressed up with lemon juice, pecorino cheese, red pepper flakes, and toasted almonds. Yes, this recipe will even impress the biggest of broccoli-haters!

PREPARATION

This recipe calls for a very hot oven, so preheat yours to 475 degrees Fahrenheit. The high temperature helps make sure your broccoli caramelizes deeply and evenly.

Next, cut the broccoli. The author recommends slicing the broccoli into “steaks” instead of breaking it apart into florets, because the slices make a prettier presentation and caramelize more evenly in the oven. I like slicing the broccoli like that because I feel like less of the stalk part goes to waste. But you can use florets if you prefer it that way, or if you feel like buying a bag of pre-cut florets at the grocery store and skipping the chopping phase entirely.

In a large bowl combine olive oil, pressed garlic, and red pepper flakes. Toss the broccoli in the oil until it’s evenly coated. Arrange the broccoli on a foil-lined baking sheet, and try to keep the broccoli pieces from touching if you can. Roast the broccoli, then sprinkle sliced almonds over the broccoli and keep cooking until they’re toasted and golden.

After you remove the broccoli from the oven, but while the broccoli is still hot, sprinkle it generously with freshly grated pecorino cheese and give it a spritz of fresh lemon juice. A bit of fresh lemon zest makes a wonderful garnish, and you can eat the broccoli right away when it’s hot. You can also save it and eat it cold later, which makes it a great option for weekend meal prepping. You’ll be glad to see it at lunch a few days later.