One of the things that I love to tell people (for shock value alone sometimes), is to eat more butter. You know, the good quality, grass fed stuff. And use it on veggies instead of only reserving it for things that taste like nothing and give you nothing (sorry, pasta).

If you use butter on your veggies, I’d bet my life on one thing: you’ll like the taste of them a lot more.

Meaning you actually might enjoy them, and look forward to them in your meal, instead of forcing them down as you eye the chocolate cake in the background.

And if you actually start to enjoy your veggies, you begin to cultivate a better relationship to eating good food. That eating healthy tastes great AND can make you feel great after. Which is a helpful thing in trying to live a healthier lifestyle, wouldn’t you say?

See how that works? Try it.

Stop making the healthy food on your plate the villians. Give them some love. Or bacon. Or (real) parmesan cheese. Butter the, up (come on, it’s good fat, people). You’ll be surprised at what you start gravitating towards.

And if carrots and parsnips aren’t your jam, this technique and marinade also works great for almost any vegetable you can think of, especially root varieties like turnips, potatoes, sweet potatoes, or beets. Try using multi-colored carrots to make this dish even more beautiful!

Roasted Carrots or Parsnips with Honey, Cilantro + Lime

Makes approximately 5 servings

1 bunch carrots or parsnips, sliced in half lengthwise (approximately 12 carrots)

1 lime, juiced

3 teaspoons honey

1 tablespoon cilantro leaves, chopped

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil or melted butter

Preheat oven to 400°F, and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Whisk lime juice, honey, cilantro, and olive oil together in a small bowl, melting the honey first if necessary. Arrange carrots or parsnips evenly on baking sheet, and drizzle with the honey-lime mixture. Roast for 25-30 minutes or until caramelized. Sprinkle with extra chopped cilantro to serve.

This recipe is just one of over 150 amazing, easy + healthy recipes from the new Simply Real Health Cookbook, on sale now.

Photo by the lovely Jasmine Pulley for the Simply Real Health Cookbook.