I’ve seen this book before so many times, so why didn’t I buy it sooner? I’m not sure. I think it was the overwhelming fear of taking on one more new cooking project with another new book.
You see, I recently purchased several new cook books. All of them now have bookmarked pages of recipes that I must try sometime this year. I have books on my side table in the living room; I have more books on the bottom self of my night table and even a few more scattered around the house.
The thought of working my way through all of those books can be intimidating.
But somehow my anxiety suddenly disappeared a few weeks ago on a Saturday morning while I was seated on my couch reading my daily dose of Gardenista (one of my favorite reads every morning) where I saw Sarah Horowitz’s piece on Roots: The Definite Compendium with more than 225 Recipes,” which is the title of Diane Morgan’s latest book.
She captured my attention with her reference to “28 vegetables from Andean tubers to yucca.” That was it. I ran to my Mac to buy the book.
I love root vegetables–everything from parsnips to yucca. There’s something very comforting about root vegetables, and the following recipe is proof of that. We made Caramelized Carrots today because I couldn’t walk away from these beautiful carrots at the farmer’s market this morning.
This recipe is quite simple and so delicious. Diane Morgan is a genius. Her book will be used and abused until I try every recipe at least once.
Caramelized Spiced Carrots with Honey & Orange
Adapted from Diane Morgan’s
Ingredients:
- 1/4 teaspoon peppercorns
- 1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1/4 teaspoon anise seeds
- 2 pounds carrots, trimmed, peeled and cut
- 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt or fine sea salt
- 1/8 teaspoon ground Aleppo chile
- 2 teaspoon orange zest
- 1/3 cup fresh orange juice
- 3 tablespoons honey
Preheat the oven t 400° F.
Roast peppercorns, cumin and anise seeds in a small cast iron pan or heavy frying pan, over high heat. Stirring constantly until lightly brown and fragrant. Transfer to a plate to cool. Grind spices to a powder using either a spice grinder or a mortar and a pestle.
Spread the carrots on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil. Toss carrots with the oil, ground spices, salt, Aleppo chile, orange zest and juice. Cover with aluminum foil and roast until carrots are tender but still crisp. About 30 minutes, make sure to stir it a couple of times. Remove from oven.
Add the honey and toss to cover. Increase the oven to 450°F and continue roasting uncovered until tender and dark brown around the edges. Serve warm or at room temperature.
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