Roasted Rainbow Easter Carrots
Children in this country consume an estimated 12 percent of their calories from fast food and 20 percent of all American meals are eaten in the car! The consequences are predictably unhealthy. Competing schedules in the day-to-day lives of a busy modern family make it difficult to share a home-cooked meal together, but not impossible. In fact, with a little planning, cooking together can become a fun family event and learning opportunity. This feature will focus on providing a child or a group of children, working together under the supervision of an adult, with one uncomplicated, healthy and delicious side dish recipe. The dishes will be centered on seasonal fresh produce items; the recipes will always contain tasks will allow even the youngest kitchen helper to contribute to the family meal. Parents should always read through each recipe carefully to judge the division of labor based on age and ability as well as to identify where adult attention might be especially needed.
Many of the recipes presented here will seem very basic, this is by design. It is hoped that these simple preparations will provide the culinary foundation and confidence to inspire kids to try more challenging recipes as their experience and confidence in the kitchen develops. Melissa’s encourages parents to find the time to gather as a family unit at least once a week for a dinner that everyone pitches in to prepare. It’s a wonderful way to teach a child some basic culinary skills and, more importantly, cooking with your children will build memories in all your hearts forever. Enjoy your kids in the kitchen, they will be grown & gone before you know it! “No one is born a great cook; one learns by doing” – Julia Child.
Baby carrots are certainly a kid’s favorite – sweet and small-hands friendly as a snack food. This colorful ingredient also pairs nicely with the painted eggs color scheme of this religious holiday that has also become a non-denominational culinary tradition at its conclusion – the Easter Sunday dinner. This very simple roasted rainbow carrots dish is a beautifully delicious side dish of caramelized carrots tossed with a zesty Gremolata mix, garnished with dried cranberries and topped with an Agave-Mustard Sauce that your kitchen helpers can have a little fun contributing to with the help of a supervising adult.
Melissa’s peeled and trimmed Rainbow Carrot takes the tedium out of this recipe, leaving the kids with only the “fun” part of the prep. This dish can be done a few hours ahead, so the kitchen is not also a culinary school come serving time. Except for the oven work, this recipe mostly involves measuring and mixing ingredients that a child of almost any age can help prepare. In fact, even tossing the carrots with olive oil for the oven could be a small-hands job tasked to a very young child who has never been asked to participate in the family’s meal prep! Getting one’s hand covered in olive oil, which then must be washed off (just like a grown-up cook), could instill the first interest in the culinary arts—one never knows where and when a person’s career will be inspired. It’s usually a little thing.
There are two other wonderful takeaways that your helpers will use for years to come in their own kitchen. The first is a healthier twist on the traditional Honey-Mustard Sauce using Melissa’s Organic Blue Agave Syrup over honey; the second is learning to make Gremolata, an Italian condiment that consists of chopped parsley mixed with garlic, citrus zest and sometimes other seasonings. The combination is zippy, bright, and fresh, making the mix an easy way to liven up salads, pasta dishes, soups, and other roasted veggie varieties – a unique and natural flavor additive!
Roasting note: While true baby carrots can be sweetly delicious, they can also easily turn from an attractive, slightly caramelized roasted root to Cajun Blackened, a technique best applied to fish or shrimp – watch very closely.
Roasted Rainbow Easter Carrots
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 lb. Rainbow Carrots with tops trimmed
Extra-virgin olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the Gremolata:
½ cup chopped Italian Parsley
1 garlic clove, grated
1 tablespoon zest of fresh orange
1 teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon sea salt
For the Agave-Mustard Sauce:
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 tablespoons sour cream
2 tablespoons Blue Agave Syrup
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons yellow mustard
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Garnish: Dried Cranberries
What the kids can do:
Place the whole carrots on the baking sheet lined with parchment paper, drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to coat and spread evenly on the baking sheet. Hand-off to supervising adult for roasting**.
While carrots are roasting, combine all the Gremolata ingredients in a small bowl. In another small bowl, combine the Mustard Sauce ingredients.
When the carrots are done, toss with the gremolata mix while they are still warm, then transfer to a serving platter.
To serve, Drizzle the mustard sauce over the carrots and garnish with dried cranberries. Serve family-style.
What the supervising adult should do:
**Roast carrots for 30 minutes at 375°F or until cooked through and starting to brown at the edges. Depending on number to be served, this might have to be done in two batches or on two baking sheets. Check often. Oversee the tossing of the hot carrots just out of the oven with the Gremolata and transferring them to a serving platter. Let your helpers do the drizzling of the sauce and sprinkling of dried cranberry garnish.
