Roasted Fennel
For our roasted fennel, we began by cutting the bulbs into wedges, which had two benefits: It provided good surface area for browning, and the attached core kept the pieces intact. Covering the pieces with foil for most of the cooking time allowed them to steam and turn creamy; we then removed the foil for the last 10 minutes of roasting so that they could turn golden and deliciously caramelized. We also tossed the wedges with salted water before covering them, which provided moisture for steaming and helped get seasoning between their layers. Arranging the pieces on the long sides of a rimmed baking sheet ensured that all the pieces got equal exposure to the heat and browned evenly.
2 fennel bulbs, bases lightly trimmed, 2 tablespoons fronds chopped coarse, stalks discarded
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon kosher salt
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
¼ teaspoon pepper
Note: Look for fennel bulbs that measure 3½ to 4 inches in diameter and weigh around 1 pound with the stalks (12 to 14 ounces without); trim the bases very lightly so that the bulbs remain intact.
1.) Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 450 degrees. Spray rimmed baking sheet with vegetable oil spray.
2.) Cut each fennel bulb lengthwise through core into 8 wedges (do not remove core). Whisk water and salt in large bowl until salt is dissolved. Add fennel wedges to bowl and toss gently to coat. Drizzle with oil, sprinkle with pepper, and toss gently to coat. Arrange fennel wedges cut side down along 2 longer sides of prepared sheet. Drizzle any water in bowl evenly over fennel wedges. Cover sheet tightly with aluminum foil and roast for 20 minutes.
3.) Remove foil from sheet and continue to roast until side of fennel touching sheet is browned, 5 to 8 minutes longer, rotating sheet halfway through roasting. Flip each fennel wedge to second cut side. Continue to roast until second side is browned, 3 to 5 minutes longer. Transfer to plate; sprinkle with topping, if using, and fennel fronds; and serve.
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