Honey Ginger Roast Carrots and Bad Dog Parenting
Adam and I haven't even been married for a year yet, but being in our late twenties (Adam turns 30 next week!) people often ask us if we are going to have kids soon. I sometimes want to say yes and I sometimes want to cover my ears and hum to myself to deny that I am even old enough to raise another human being.
Most days I feel that I don't have a handle on my every day life to even consider adding a real life mini person into the mix. I get overwhelmed easily. And then there are days, like yesterday, where I feel like I'm not even a good dog parent so maybe I should master that before I move on to a real human life. You see, we took Penny for a walk in the trails yesterday. It was the best walk of her life! She was off leash, she tried to dig up a gopher (until I realized it could be a snake hole and made her stop) she chased squirrels, she smelled dirt and weeds - she was in heaven. Her tongue was hanging out like a cartoon and she looked incredibly happy... until she started shaking her head like crazy and I realized yeah, we shouldn't have let our dog run through a FIELD of FOXTAILS. If you don't know what foxtails are, like Adam didn't, they are small little weeds or weed seeds that get into dogs ears, eyes, nose, etc and can cause major damage. They are pointy and barbed like a fish hook, and they are small and hard to see once they've gotten into your dogs ear. Poor Pen. We had to take her to the emergency vet and they pulled 3 foxtails out, one of which had been in there for a while. She's one tough doggy. They had to sedate her to get them out and she was quite hilarious when she came out of sedation. She was walking sideways and when we put her in the car to take her home and I tried to move her over so I could sit down and she just collapsed on my lap. But she's all better now and we will no longer be letting her run wild through fields of foxtails. (Um, duh.)
You're probably wondering what any of this has to do with Honey Ginger Carrots? Well, none of this really has anything to do with carrots... except that some dogs like carrots, like my mom and dad's dog, but I wouldn't feed them Honey Ginger Carrots and Penny's not the biggest fan of carrots, unless the other dogs are eating carrots, but anyways, let's talk about these gorgeous Honey Ginger Carrots!
I made these for Easter and yes, it was my first time trying the recipe, even though I just discussed not doing that anymore. But the recipe came from Eat, Live, Run so I knew it had to be good. And it was quite the hit!
One change I made to the recipe was roasting my carrots at a higher temperature, since I love the nice brown crust that root veggies get when roasted at a high temp. I picked up white, purple, and orange organic carrots from the farmer's market and I would highly recommend you do the same! You don't have to get different color carrots, but the smaller size of the organic carrots makes them easier to roast and more manageable as a side dish without having to chop the carrots up. Also they are organic, and that's always a good thing! I didn't peel mine, but spent a good amount of time scrubbing them to ensure that they were nice and clean. If I came across a bigger one I would split it in half vertically, from end to end.
I left a little bit of the green top on, because I liked the rustic look. I also made a VERY large batch! 6 pounds of carrots to feed about 20 people. They came out great. This is a perfect side dish for holidays because almost everyone likes carrots, especially when you add butter and honey! But it's also a great dish to throw together for any meal.
I wrote this recipe for 3 pounds of carrots, because that's a nice amount to feed a family and have some leftovers. But when I made it, I doubled the amount, so my photos show approximately 6 pounds of carrots.
Honey Ginger Roast Carrots
lightly adapted from Eat, Live, Run
8 - 10 side servings (recipe halves easily)
3 pounds small organic carrots, scrubbed clean
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (or less to taste)
1/2 cup honey (I use raw honey)
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger powder
2 tablespoons butter (I use Kerrygold Irish butter)
splash of white wine vinegar (about half a tablespoon)
sea salt to finish (if desired)
1/2 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, chopped (optional)
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Scrub carrots clean and trim tops as desired. Split any larger carrots in half (from end to end). The goal is to have carrots that are close in size so they roast evenly. Spread carrots in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with foil or parchment paper (for easy clean up). Use 2 baking sheets if necessary.
Pour olive oil over carrots and roll them around to get them evenly coated. Sprinkle carrots with kosher salt. Roast for 20 to 35 minutes until carrots pierce with a fork. You can leave them with a slight crunch or wait till the fork really pierces the carrot with ease, it's up to you!
Toward the end of the carrots roasting, start the sauce. In a saucepan, heat the honey, butter, ginger powder, and white wine vinegar. Bring it to a boil, and then reduce and let simmer for 2 to 3 minutes.
When carrots come out of the oven, pour the sauce over the carrots and toss to evenly coat. Finish with a touch of sea salt if desired. Sprinkle thyme leaves over carrots, if using.
Love, Luck, and Happiness!