• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Lightly oil a baking sheet, preferably with extra-virgin olive oil or a flavorless oil, like canola.
• Toss the carrots, Brussels sprouts, and mushrooms in a bowl with enough extra-virgin olive oil just to coat. (Start with about 1 Tbsp. of oil, and add more as you need.) If you add too much oil, the roasted vegetables might become too oily and heavy.
• Add in pinches of salt and freshly-ground black pepper to taste, and toss again.
• Reserve half of the carrots.
• Place the vegetables (minus the reserved half-batch of carrots) and mushrooms on the baking sheet, spreading them out so that there is open space and they do not touch. (If the vegetables get too crowded, they might steam instead of roast. You want the caramelization from roasting here.) If your baking sheet gets too crowded, either put the extra vegetables on a separate baking sheet, or bake in batches.
• On the baking sheet, sprinkle the carrots with thyme leaves.
• To the remaining carrots in the bowl, add about a tablespoon of red wine vinegar and 1/8 tsp. (or more, to taste) of cumin. Toss to coat. Place the remaining carrots on the baking sheets along with the other vegetables and mushrooms.
• Roast the vegetables in a 400 degree oven for about 30 minutes.
• About halfway through the baking time, stir the vegetables gently to ensure they roast evenly.
• Add more baking time as needed.
• When the vegetables look nicely shriveled and browned, remove them from the oven.
• As the vegetables cool, slice and toast the bread.
• Top with vegetables and cheese as you prefer, and broil as necessary.

Instructions for specific toasts:

• Brussels sprouts tartine: Pile the Brussels sprouts on top of a piece of toast. Grate some goats-milk Gouda on top. Broil.
• Cumin-roasted carrot tartine: Spread a piece of toast with goat cheese. Top with the cumin-roasted carrots. Drizzle some good balsamic vinegar on top.
• Avocado toast: Thinly slice a ripe avocado, and fan out over toast. Top with ghost pepper chili salt and perhaps some flakes of red pepper.
• Roasted shiitake mushroom tartine: Pile roasted shiitakes or other mushrooms on top of toast. Top with generous amount of grated Gruyere cheese. Broil.
• Goat cheese, lavender, and honey toast: Spread a piece of toast with goat cheese. Sprinkle with dried or fresh lavender buds. Using a squeeze bottle, drizzle with honey.
• Thyme-roasted carrots tartine: Pile the thyme-roasted carrots on top of a piece of toast. Top with a generous amount of grated Gruyere cheese. Broil.