My favorite thing to do with carrots (well, besides just munch on them raw, of course) is to cook them with this interesting little recipe I picked up off an episode of Good Eats some years back. It's become a staple side dish for Thanksgiving dinners, but it's equally tastey for any occasion or for none at all. Ginger ale is not the first thing I'd think to glaze my carrots with, but try it -- I find it works wonderfully, providing the perfect amount of sweetness without being overbearing. The carrots turn out tasting more essentially carroty than any raw carrot, so of course I love them. It's a pretty simple recipe and certainly worth the trouble if ever you're in the mood for carrots.You'll need...
- A pound of carrots (about 7 medium-sized carrots)
- 1 ounce (2 tablespoons) of butter
- A pinch of kosher salt
- 1 cup of ginger ale
- 1/2 teaspoon of chili powder
- 1 tablespoon of freshly chopped parsley
- Cut your carrots into even slices (use a mandolin if you have one to get perfectly even cuts)
- Heat the carrots with the butter, salt, and ginger ale on medium-high, covered, for 5 minutes
- Add the chili powder and turn the heat up to high, gently stirring occasionally (if you're too rough with them, they'll break apart), for 4 or 5 minutes -- until the liquid is nearly cooked out
- When the carrots are just tender ("barely resist the advances of a paring knife"), take them off the heat and toss them with the parsley
- Eat up! (Though you may prefer to wait until they're cool enough not to burn your tongue.)
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