Seasonal Spotlight: Carrots

Ahhh, crunchy sweet carrots!! Winter is the time when they are at their best. Carrots - who doesn't love this root vegetable? Often associated as long and orange, there are actually many varieties of carrots that come in different sizes, shapes, and colors.

There are round, turnip-like carrots, and even purple carrots In Japan, the carrots I saw were huge and thick, and red!

Carrots are one of Mother Nature's best foods. Packed full of vitamins and beta carotene, they do a body good. They can be eaten raw, juiced, baked, braised, grilled ... you name it.

Good dips to make for carrots:
Muhammara
Hummus

Some carrot recipes:
Carrots in Marsala
Indian Spiced Carrot Soup with Ginger
Word of Mouth: Mirepoix
Spicy Sweet Potato and Carrot Soup

(Image: Kathryn Hill)

Comments (6)

Carrots have been really appealing to me lately, too. I recently tried a recipe where they're glazed with pomegranate, cardamom and cumin. Tasty! It's posted here: http://tinyurl.com/9hpc7a

posted by mgood on January 8th 2009 at 4:46pm
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Has anyone made a carrot risotto? The fresh flavor, not to mention the color of the finished product, intrigue me enough to give it a go. But I'm not sure if I should use grated or finely chopped carrots. Any testimonials would be much appreciated.

posted by rosebud on January 8th 2009 at 5:39pm
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My favorite fast wintertime salad is nothing more than a bunch of grated carrots, turnips, and fennel, tossed with a bit of red wine or sherry vinegar, salt and pepper, and a slick of olive oil. It adds a bit of freshness to winter's normally heavy meals.

posted by sjbreeze on January 8th 2009 at 7:21pm
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Steamed maroon carrots with lemon butter = heaven!

posted by Eve in Hochelaga on January 9th 2009 at 1:11pm
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I love carrots. We go through over 5 pounds a week between juicing them, using them in soups, and roasting them. Roasted carrots are amazing! My little girls will eat piles and piles of them since the sweetness of the carrots really comes out with roasting.

posted by sar3j on January 10th 2009 at 1:22pm
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Hi rosebud, carrot risotto is really good. Here is a link for a recipe that is great especially if you need to go grocery shopping and there is not much to eat in your fridge.
http://www.digsmagazine.com/recipes/recipe_risottowithcarrotsandonions.htm

posted by X-ty on January 11th 2009 at 11:25am
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