Carrots are some of the most affordable and common vegetables that all of us can get a hold of in winter so why not jazz them up a bit I thought! Here is a starter or side dish full of flavour where the humble carrot takes centre stage. In this rendition they’ve got a little chili pepper heat and lots of sweetness released and enhanced with a touch of maple syurp. Gremolata, a zesty and zingy parsley dressing, accompanies said carrots along with toasted hazelnuts and -plant based greed yogurt. Altogether it’s a delight and I hope you’ll try it!

This dish was put together as the starter for my Valentine’s Day three course menu video on YouTube for this year. It’s the third time I’ve made on of these! You can see year 2020 and 2021 too by clicking the years. This year these carrots are followed by a hot pink creamy beetroot pasta and delicious no-bake chocolate and peanut butter tartelettes. Yum!

Malin x

Spicy Roasted Carrots on Yogurt with Gremolata and Hazelnuts

Serves 4.

INGREDIENTS:

500 g carrots

1 tbsp olive oil

0,5 tsp maple syrup

0,5 tsp aleppo chili pepper flakes

0,5 tsp garlic powder

Pinch of salt and black pepper

Gremolata:

0,5 cup / A very large handful flat leaf parsley

Zest from 1 lemon

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 small garlic clove

Salt, to taste

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Serve with:

4 heaped tbsp unsweetened plant based greek yogurt

0,25 cup chopped hazelnuts, toasted

METHOD:

Preheat the oven to 220 degrees celsius, fan assisted.

Peel the carrots if needed. If the carrots are small simply roast them as is but if they are larger cut them into equal sized batons. Place the prepped carrots in a mixing bowl and drizzle with the oil and maple syrup and season with aleppo pepper flakes, garlic powder, salt and black pepper. Toss to coat and transfer to an oven tray. Spread them out into a single layer and roast in the preheated oven for roughly 20-25 minutes, the roasting time will depend on the size of the carrots. It may even take a little longer if the carrots are chunky, simply be patient and test the tenderness with a fork. They should turn a little bit golden when ready.

While the carrots are roasting prepare the gremolata. Finely chop the parsley and add it to a bowl. Zest your lemon into the bowl and if using a micro plane use it also for grating the garlic clove into the bowl. If you are not using a micro plane simply mince the garlic in the way you prefer and add it to the bowl along with the lemon juice and salt. Drizzle over the olive oil and mix well.

When the carrots are roasted plate up by spreading 1 tbsp of yogurt onto each plate and smudging it out a little. Top with the roasted carrots. Drizzle over the gremolata and sprinkle over the toasted hazelnuts.

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