When you look for carrots that are tender and fresh, you want a bunch that still has the tops attached. Look for bright and healthy-looking green foliage that indicates the freshest bunch of carrots. Don’t toss the carrot tops away when it comes cooking time, instead, use the carrot fronds as the basis for a wonderful fresh gremolata that will make the roasted carrots with carrot top gremolata the star of the meal.
There is a myth that the tops of carrots are poisonous, not true—carrot greens are wonderful to eat as they have a pleasant taste is subtly tart and herby at the same time. Using the tops is a great way to balance the sweetness of the carrots themselves and nothing goes to waste. Buying carrots with the tops attached insures that the carrots are fresh and have not been stored for several months, which will make the whole dish taste bright and fresh.
What is a Gremolata
Gremolata (pronounced greh·mow·laa·tuh) and sometimes spelled gremolada, is a mixture of fresh herbs with lemon zest and garlic. It is often served fish and meat. But don’t limit the mixture, it is a great way to add fresh flavor to a dish.
Roasting Vegetables 101
There are a couple of hints for preparing perfectly roasted vegetables.
- Remember to use high heat, somewhere between 400°F – 450°F. Lower oven temperatures won’t cause the outside to begin to caramelize and produce the chemical reaction, call the Maillard reaction, which gives browned food its wonderful flavor before the vegetable withers and dries to a deflated husk.
- Prep the vegetables so the pieces are uniform in size. This allows all the vegetables to cook at the same rate.
- Toss the vegetables with oil, salt, and pepper. Seasoning the vegetables before the cooking process gets the flavor into the vegetables and tastes so much better than any seasoning done after the vegetables are cooked.
- Dense, low moisture vegetables that longer to roast vegetables that are less dense or contain more moisture. Think of the difference between cooking butternut squash versus zucchini squash.
- Arrange vegetables in a single layer and don’t overcrowd the pan. Let the individual pieces of vegetables have some space. (Think of it as social distancing.) This is easy to do by gently shaking the baking pan to create a single layer of pieces and slightly separate them.
- Move the pieces around halfway through cooking to promote more surface browning which equals more crusty goodness. Caution, don’t keep on opening the oven door to toss the vegetables since every time the oven opens, the cooking temperature drops making it not only take longer to cook, but creates an uneven cooking temperature which defeats the first hint to great roasted vegetables.
- Rely on the look, feel and smell of the roasted vegetables rather than the cooking time to tell when they are done. Ovens vary, especially if your oven isn’t calibrated it may not be getting as hot as you think. The vegetables are properly roasted when they are browned on the edges and fork-tender. Use the times below as a guide to how long to roast various vegetables.
Vegetable Roasting Times
The times below are for pieces of vegetables cut into 1-1/2” pieces (as needed) and roasted at 425°F, while being tossed halfway through cooking.
- Asparagus: 15-20 minutes
- Broccoli: 20-25 minutes
- Brussels Sprouts: 20-25 minutes
- Butternut Squash: 35-40 minutes
- Carrots (quartered into sticks): 30-35 minutes
- Cauliflower: 20-25 minutes
- Green Beans: 20-25 minutes
- Potatoes: 45-50 minutes
- Zucchini: 15-20 minutes
Roasted Carrots with Carrot Top Gremolata
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 6 1x
- Category: side dish
- Method: roasted
- Diet: Vegan
Description
The freshest carrots, roasted until crisp on the outside and perfectly cooked on the inside and then topped with a fresh sauce that complements the dish wonderfully. This is a wonderful spring vegetable that is perfect for Easter dinner.
Ingredients
- 1 bunch fresh carrots with carrot tops (about a pound)
- 1–1/2 tablespoons olive oil
- Kosher salt
- Black pepper
Gremolata
- 1 cup carrot fronds, (remove leaves from stems and coarsely chop)
- 1/2 cup fresh parsley
- 2 tablespoons fresh mint
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1–1/2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes to taste
- Kosher salt
- Black pepper
- 1/4 cup toasted sunflower kernels (pepitas), coarsely chopped to garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Remove carrot tops from carrots and set aside. Peel the carrots and cut into evenly sized sticks. Depending on the diameter of each carrot, this might mean some carrots are quartered, while a particularly large carrot may need to be cut into 1/8” to make the pieces even in thickness.
- Arrange the carrot sticks on the prepared baking sheet and toss with 1-1/2 tablespoon olive oil, kosher salt and black pepper. Arrange pieces in a single layer with space around the carrots to promote even cooking.
- Roast in 425°F oven for 30 minutes. Toss vegetables half way through to allow more surfaces to get nicely browned.
- Meanwhile, remove the carrot leaves from the stems and coarsely chop.
- In a mini food processor, add the carrot frond, fresh parsley, mint, lemon zest, lemon juice, maple syrup and olive oil. Pulse 4-6 times and then process for 20 seconds until the herbs are evenly minced and the gremolata comes together.
- Taste and add kosher salt, pepper and a pinch of red pepper flakes to taste. Set aside.
- Coarsely chop toasted sunflower kernels as set aside.
- When carrots are roasted, remove pan from oven and arrange carrots on a serving platter. Spoon the gremolata down the middle of the roasted carrots and sprinkle the toasted sunflower kernels on top to garnish. Serve warm.
Notes
Choose the carrot bunch with fresh carrot fronds and evenly sized carrots for best results.
The carrots can be prepped several hours before and cooked just before serving.
The gremolata is best when prepared within 2 hours of serving to keep the color bright green.
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