Good Taste / November 2006
Vegetable with a Point
As a snack, side dish, garnish or snowman’s essential, carrots are popular with all ages. Carrots are in season in the summer and fall when they are the freshest and most flavorful.
The deeply colored underground root is known scientifically as Daucus carota, a name traced back to ancient Roman writings of the 3rd century. Carrots belong to the same family as parsnips, fennel caraway, cumin and dill. The familiar wild carrot, sometimes called Queen Anne’s lace, is the same species as the garden carrot which was bred from it.
Carrots are an excellent source of dietary fiber, minerals and antioxidant compounds, and the richest vegetable source of the pro-vitamin A carotenes. Carrots’ antioxidant compounds help protect against cardiovascular disease and cancer and promote good vision, especially night vision.
Orange is the norm, but carrots also come in white, yellow, red, or purple. In fact, purple is the original carrot color. When first cultivated in central Asian and Middle Eastern countries, carrots ranged from lavender to deep eggplant-purple. In pre-Hellenic times, a yellow-rooted variety appeared in Afghanistan which developed into an early version of today’s carrot. Carrots didn’t become a popular vegetable in Europe until the Renaissance. After they were introduced to the US, because of their popularity in the early 1800s, carrots were the first vegetable to be canned.
There are over 100 different varieties of carrots with a carrot variety for every letter of the alphabet, except x. Carrots can be as small as two inches or as long as three feet, with diameters from one-half inch to over two inches. Texas A&M University has developed a purple-skinned, orange-fleshed carrot, the BetaSweet or Maroon carrot.
While any carrot can be harvested before reaching its full size, the ready-to-eat “baby carrots” sold in supermarkets since the late 1980’s are just full-sized carrots that have been sliced and peeled to make uniform carrot sticks.
‘Imperator’ carrots are most commonly sold whole in American grocery stores; their roots are longer than other carrot cultivars, and taper to a point at the tip. The nearly cylindrical ‘Nantes’ carrots, blunt and rounded at top and tip, are often sweeter than other carrots. ‘Danvers’ carrots have a conical shape with well-defined shoulders that taper to a point. They are often pureed as baby food and are Bugs Bunny’s favorite carrot.
‘Chantenay’ carrots are shorter than the other cultivars, but have greater girth, sometimes growing up to three inches in diameter. They are most commonly diced for use in canned or prepared foods.
The best carrots are firm, smooth, relatively straight and bright in color. The deeper the orange-color, the more beta-carotene in the carrot. Cracked, limp or rubbery carrots are showing sure signs of age. Since sugars are concentrated in the carrots’ core, carrots with larger diameters will have a larger core and generally be sweeter.
Carrots keep up to two weeks if stored properly. The trick is minimizing the amount of moisture they lose. Store them in the coolest part of the refrigerator in a plastic bag or wrapped in a paper towel, which reduces the amount of condensation.
Store carrots away from apples, pears and potatoes, fruits and vegetables that produce ethylene gas and make carrots bitter.
The carrot’s green tops will cause the carrots to wilt prematurely by pulling moisture from the roots, so cut them off before storing.
Wash and scrub carrots gently with a vegetable brush right before eating. Peeling is recommended for old or thick carrots and for those not organically grown. Carrots average about 40 calories each, with 9 grams of carbohydrates and 5 grams of sugar.
Carrots can be served raw, cooked, whole, julienned, grated, shredded or sliced into sticks or rounds. They are grated into salads for color, added to soups and stews and essential for carrot cake and carrot pudding. Shredded raw carrots and chopped carrot greens make great additions to traditional green salads. Shredded carrots, beets and apples combined together make a colorful, tasty salad, too.
The beta-carotene in carrots is not destroyed by cooking. Cooking actually breaks down the fiber, making the nutrient and carrots’ sugars more available and sweeter tasting.
For quick, nutritious soup that can be served hot or cold, purée boiled carrots and potatoes in a blender or food processor, and add herbs and spices to taste.
Try spiced carrot sticks as a flavorful variation for parties. Soak carrot sticks in hot water spiced with cayenne, coriander seeds and salt. Cool, drain and serve.
For everything anyone would ever want to know about carrots, visit: http://www.carrotmuseum.co.uk/
Brewed Carrots with Dill
1 lb. carrots, peeled and cut into small sticks
1 tablespoon butter (butter only, no substitute)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon dill weed
1/2 bottle beer
Sauté carrots in the butter until barely brown. Add beer and dill; cook slowly for 15 minutes. Carrots should be crisp/tender. Add salt and sugar and continue to cook for another 3 minutes. Serve hot.
Carrot Casserole with Cheese
8 cups sliced carrots
1 large onion, diced
1 tablespoon butter
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups grated cheese (Swiss, Munster or processed cheese)
1/2 cup fine, dry bread crumbs
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bring a large pot of salted water (_ tsp per cup of water) to a boil. Add carrots and cook until tender but still firm, about 15 minutes. Drain and place in a 2 quart casserole dish. Stir in onion, butter, cream, salt, pepper and cheese; mix well.
Sprinkle bread crumbs over the top. Bake 50 minutes.
Carrot Pie
6 medium carrots, cooked and pureed
2 eggs, beaten
2 cups milk
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp allspice
2 tsp cinnamon
1 unbaked 9” pie shell
Combine carrots, eggs, milk and seasonings in mixing bowl. Beat for 2 minutes.
Pour into pie shell. Bake at 400°F for 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350°F and bake for 45 minutes more. (Tastes like pumpkin pie.)
Roasted Carrots with Herbs
2 lbs carrots peeled and cut into one inch lengths
2 TBS extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp coarse salt
1 TBS chopped fresh herbs: chives, flat leaf parsley, thyme or a mix
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In a large bowl, toss carrots with oil, salt and herbs. Spread carrots in a baking pan just large enough to hold them in one layer, Roast, shaking the pan once or twice, until carots are fork tender, about 30 minutes. Serves four.
In A Word…
Carat is the unit of weight for precious stones, equal to 200 milligrams.
Caret is a proof readers insertion mark.
Carrot is the edible orange rooted vegetable.
Karat is one 24th part of otherwise pure gold.
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