Little fun factoid of the day:
In the book, Salt Sugar Fat, I learned that the man responsible for popularizing baby carrots was a top executive for Coca-Cola. After years of using his genius marketing strategies towards promoting a sugary beverage, he realized he was a major contributor to the health crisis in western countries. In an effort to rectify the harm he had done, he set out to use the same marketing strategies to promote something healthy–the baby carrot. In short, he marketed baby carrots as a junk food (not as an antidote to junk food). Very quickly, baby carrots became a regular item in homes, vending machines and other food venues.
Probably like you, baby carrots are very much a staple in our home. My kids love them and they seem to be a go-to veggie when nothing else sounds good or I don’t have time to make something. While I do like a fresh baby carrot, it’s fun to tinker with recipes that give them a new flavor.
Sweet and Savory Baby Carrots
I’m pretty much a sucker for any sweet-savory combination so it is no surprise that I liked this recipe. I was inspired by this recipe but made tweaks with what ingredients I had on hand.
It’s super simple to make. Simply mix together all of the ingredients, minus the carrots.
Now stir in the carrots, making sure they are all coated with the glazed goodness. Place them in a baking dish or on a baking sheet and cook them for 30-40 minutes. I like mine a tad on the firm side so I cooked mine for 30. If you like a little more mush to your cooked carrot, let them cook for around 40.
Behold. You have now created a super flavorful baby carrot.
I think these would be a great side dish to any of these dinners:
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Try this sweet-savory twist on carrots. These make a great side dish to almost any dinner.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon butter, melted
- 1/2 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (or 1/8 tsp ground thyme)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
- 1 pound baby carrots
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients except for the carrots. Mix well.
- Add carrots into the mix until they are all covered in the glaze.
- Place carrots into a baking dish and bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes (depending on how done you like them.)
Made these for dinner tonight and they were exactly what I was looking for! I didn’t want savory, but I didn’t want just sweet either and these were perfect!! I’ll be making these again and again and again. Thank you!
★★★★★