It took me a lot of years to appreciate carrots.  When I was young, I didn’t really care for them raw and the cooked version often came in some stew.  I’d eat them, but they were never something I’d go back for.  Maybe that’s why I found oven-roasted carrots such a surprise.  Somehow, the magic of roasting them turns carrots into a sweet and tasty little treat. 

Good For You

According to WHFoods.org, there are lots of reasons to love carrots:  They’re good for your vision.  They’re packed with essential cancer fighting vitamins.  They may also help with blood sugar regulation.  Smokers may be surprised to learn they have been shown to cut the risk of lung cancer and other lung related diseases.  Apparently, smoking depletes vitamin A and carrots contain an abundance of it—a version you don’t get from any synthesized pill.

So Easy

The best part of roasting carrots is that it’s so easy.  The only real issue is cooking time.  My wife and I have roasted a lot of carrots over the years.  We’ve gradually discovered they taste best when some of the carrots start to blacken and turn color.  Some people might say they look a little burnt, but once you’ve tried this a few times we think you’re going to agree.

Directions

The easiest way to roast carrots is as follows:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

All you need are some carrots and a little oil.

Peel and slice whole carrots into thin strips or simply pick up a bag of those “baby carrots” you find ready to eat at the store.

Pour 1-2 tablespoons of extra-light olive oil into a glass 9 x 13 or other baking pan (extra-light is okay to heat at a high temp).  Toss in your carrots.  Stir them around until they are coated in the oil.  Shake salt and pepper over everything and pop the pan into the oven.

Pour on a little oil and stir.

Set your timer for 15 minutes.  The total cooking time will range anywhere from 35 minutes to an hour.  It depends on the thickness of the carrots you’re cooking, as well as the type of pan you use.  At 15 minutes stir the carrots and pop them back into the oven.  Check again every 15 minutes or so until they appear to be done.

This batch was just a bit overdone. You want a little black, but not all black.

As mentioned, there’s a point where the carrots start to blacken at the tips or around an edge or two.  This is the point they taste best.

I overcooked the batch on the left.  Several of my carrots were totally black on one side.  If I’d stirred them a couple more times and pulled them out a bit sooner they would have been perfect.

Serve your carrots hot all by themselves or with your favorite meal.

Enjoy

Bob Anderson
© 2011 Javabird LLC.  All rights reserved.

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If you enjoyed this post, you may also want to read:
I Love Oven Roasted Asparagus
Or to find a complete list of all our favorite recipes click here.

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