Cumin-Roasted Carrots

http://www.MelJoulwan.com/2011/01/13/cumin-roasted-carrot-coins/

So here’s a thing: I don’t particularly like carrots. And I especially don’t enjoy them raw.

I’ll eat them, but not with relish. Snap peas and jicama and pepper strips? I’ll devour those raw with a smile on my face.

But there’s something about raw carrots that just leaves me cold.

However, carrots are packed with nutrients and, honestly, it’s the time of year when a big bunch of gorgeous organic carrots — complete with frilly green tops — show up almost every week in my Farmhouse Delivery.

Which got me thinking: can I do something to the carrots to make them enjoyable?

And you know what I thought: cumin!

Carmelized on the outside, tender on the inside, and infused with the earthy tang of cumin, these roasted carrots are totally worth eating. Go ahead: make like Bugs and chomp into ’em.

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Cumin-Roasted Carrots

Serves 2-4 | Prep 5 minutes | Cook 20 minutes

Ingredients:
  • 1 pound fresh carrots (about 10)

  • 1/2 tablespoon ground cumin

  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

  • 1 1/2 tablespoons coconut oil

  • 1/2 fresh lemon (optional)

  • a few leaves of fresh parsley and mint, minced, for garnish (optional)

Directions:
1

Preheat the oven to 400 F. Cover a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

2

Wash and peel the carrots, then cut them lengthwise into thin strips, about 1/4-inch wide. Toss them into a large bowl.

3

With a fork, mix the cumin, cinnamon, salt, and pepper in a small microwave-safe bowl. Add the coconut oil and microwave until melted, about 15-20 seconds.

4

Pour the seasoned coconut oil over the carrots and toss with two wooden spoons until the carrots are evenly coated. Sing a verse of your favorite song so you don’t skimp on tossing time. Do a taste test and adjust the seasonings.

5

Spread the carrots in a single layer on the baking sheet and roast for 15-20 minutes, until tender and slightly browned. Remove from the oven and squeeze the fresh lemon juice over the top. Sprinkle with the chopped herbs.

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Comments

  • Marcy says:

    I am the exact opposite. I really like muching raw carrots, but I have never been a big fan of cooked carrots (outside a mirepoix/stew type of thing). However, Moroccan spiced carrots (starring cumin, of course) are my absolute favorite and I could eat a whole pot of them myself. They're also my husband's favorite!

  • slowmiles says:

    I'm delurking (I think? I don't think I've commented before) to say that these carrots look amazing. My husband is deranged and doesn't like roasted vegetables…but I'm hoping these will convert him.
    Speaking of converting…I made your home-made mayo…. I have no words. amazing. I have to force myself to NOT eat it straight from the container with a spoon.

  • Melissa 'Melicious' Joulwan says:

    slowmiles –> Glad you delurked (also, love the word 'delurked')! Anything with cumin is a good idea, in my opinion, but I'm DERANGED about cumin. And yes, the mayo's a little problem for me, too. I DO lick the spoon. A lot. I've also perfected a creamy Italian dressing recipe based on the mayo; it's SUPER yummo.

  • ben says:

    this is twice now that youve hit me with perfect timing. two nights ago we did a medley of roasted root veg. carrots were among the turnips, rutabaga, etc. And they were the only pieces left:) I dunno what happened, i had tossed them with the same salt, pepper, and lard that i did the others but for whatever reason they just came out lacking. anyway, cumin will be the answer next time. nice one.

  • Melissa 'Melicious' Joulwan says:

    Hey, Ben! The cumin makes 'em really tasty. It's my favorite spice, so I pretty much try to sneak it into everything.

  • Trixie says:

    Yum, they look like Tater-tots!

  • BurdNurd says:

    OMG!! These were so good, I had to stop myself from eating the entire batch in one sitting! Love, love, love them.

  • Melissa 'Melicious' Joulwan says:

    Trixie –> If only! But I love them more than Tater-tots 'cause they're not poison 😉

    BurdNurd –> Hooray! I'm glad you loved them. Cumin is magical!

  • Pensguys says:

    I made these tonight with our dinner (pork tenderloin and baked asparagus). OH MY!!!! I'm not a fan of cooked carrots, but these are SOOOOO yummy!!! Can't wait to have them again.

  • Melissa 'Melicious' Joulwan says:

    Man! That dinner sounds REALLY good! Glad this recipe has turned you into a carrot lover.

  • Pensguys says:

    I cooked the pork tenderloin in the crockpot and sprinkled it with onion powder and garlic powder. After it made some of it's own juices, I sliced it almost in half and sprinkled more on the inside. It had a really good flavor. I got the baked asparagus recipe (really simple….just put on pan, drizzle with EVOO, salt/pepper and bake on 350 for 15-20 min) from everydaypaleo.com

  • jlautry says:

    These sound awesome!! Its going on my list of recipes to try out SOON!! I'm getting a lot of carrots as well so I have plenty to try this with.

  • Anonymous says:

    These sound great. Sorry for what might be one of those "annoying" questions but… I'm just starting with Paleo and am confused about portions. When you make this recipe with 6 carrots – is this for 2 servings? 3? 1? Thanks.

  • Melissa 'Melicious' Joulwan says:

    Anonymous –> You are welcome to ask anything, and I won't be annoyed 🙂

    You really don't need to measure with paleo — just eat vegetables until you're satisfied. However, I'm a big-time weigh and measure person, so I understand your question.

    Depending on the people involved, this is a 3-4 serving recipe… although you really can't go wrong eating vegetables.

  • Joelle says:

    First of all….love your site and all the recipes.Wish I could come and eat with you guys.I've been kind of forced to go Paleo,bc of my illness,but I never enjoyed cooking.Too much of a hassle and I usually don't know how to make it taste delicious. (Kind of afraid to,but that's another story.) Anyway,you're recipes might help me along the way.

    Second,I think you look awesome!

    Third,I on the contrary love carrots;)…never roasted them with cumin. If you'd like to go for another option to enjoy carrots,instead of cumin/S&P mix them with some cinnamon. Cinnamon is also very yummy with cooked red beets.

  • Melissa 'Melicious' Joulwan says:

    Joelie –>
    First, thank YOU for letting me know you like the recipes And feel free to post questions here or shoot me an email with cooking questions.

    Second, you are a sweet talked.

    Third, love the idea of cinnamon on carrots. Can't wait to try it!

  • Sarah says:

    Just started this journey….swapped carrots for parsnips!! Yum!

    • Mel says:

      Congratulations on cleaning up your diet! Glad you like the recipe… shoot me questions if you have them as move along your path.

  • Dana says:

    I’ve been looking for a side dish to go with one of my new favorites, curried mint lamb meatballs — this will do the trick nicely!

    • Mel says:

      Share! You’ve got to point us to the meatball recipe!

      • Dana says:

        Sure! This makes about 15 meatballs which is enough for two dinners and one lunch. I usually have them over salad greens.

        # 1/4 cup Yellow Onion
        # 1/4 cup Cilantro
        # 1/4 cup Pine Nuts
        # 1/4 cup Golden Seedless Raisins
        # 1 egg
        # 1/2 tsp Salt
        # to taste: Curry powder
        # to taste: Ground Black Pepper
        # 1 lb ground Lamb
        # 1 1/2 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

        Preheat oven to 350

        In a food processor blend together onion, cilantro, pine nuts, raisins, egg, salt, pepper and curry until well blended. Remove from food processor and place in bowl. Mix in ground lamb and olive oil, and incorporate fully, but do not over mix.

        Form into meatballs approximately 1.5 inches in diameter.

        Place meatballs on baking pan and bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.

        Take meatballs off of baking pan and let sit on paper towel for a minute to drain off excess oil.

  • Dana says:

    oh and cilantro, mint, whichever you like! Maybe both?

  • Alyssa says:

    I finally made these today and WOW I have never tasted carrots like this before. Mind blowing, totally going to be my new go-to side. Thank you so much for the recipe.

  • Amy says:

    I made these from your cookbook last night and WAY TO GO!! Yum. They were gobbled up by children and adults alike…even after I told them that they were CARROTS. Thanks for the great book!

  • charis anne says:

    made these tonight with Everyday Paleo’s Pecan Crusted Chicken.

    Divine!

    Love your recipes; keep it up:)

  • Christina says:

    First of all. OH. MY. GOSH. I cooked up these bad boys last night and thought I was going to die from happiness. I served them up with some almond flour breaded pork chops and BEST DINNER EVER!!

    Night before I tried the Cinnamon Beef Stew and WOW, it was tasty. Right now, I’m counting down the days until this weekend when I’m going to try the Jicama Home Fries. Thanks for the awesome cookbook!!

    • Mel says:

      WOOT! Glad you liked the carrots… and the beef stew. YAY!

      The home fries are fun — and our new favorite way to eat them is to add ground beef and make hash. Enjoy!

  • Kris says:

    Could you use baby carrots cut in half? That’s all I’ve got and these intrigue me!

  • I think it’s fair to say that these KICK BUTT!

  • Therese says:

    We’ve made these a few times and enjoyed them lots, but last night I made them with ghee instead of coconut oil – wow! I loved them even more!!!

  • Kristina says:

    Okay, so I absolutely despise carrots in basically any form (I will eat them raw, but only if I HAVE to). And if they’re cooked.. forget it. But I saw this recipe, and since you admitted to disliking carrots, too, I figured I should give it a try. (Especially since we’re doing our first Whole30 and need some good recipes to fall back on!)

    And DANG. These. ROCK. My husband is the one who likes carrots, but I ate way more of these than he did. They’re amazing, and easy to make, and just… gosh, so delicious!
    I think they taste like sweet potatoes. Which is awesome.
    Thank you for this recipe! Now I know what to do with all my carrots!
    xo
    Kristina

  • Michelle says:

    I don’t know if I should post this comment here – because your cumin carrots inspired it – of if I should post it under your Ras el Hanout because that is the spice I used. But anyway, Ras el Hanout is delicious on roasted carrots!

    I was feeling like something Moroccan on my carrots and wishing there might be something like that in Well Fed 2, when I decided to use my spice mix. I am still thinking something with the spices, tomato paste, lemon juice, something…if you want to create it, I’ll cook it! 🙂

    And please try to make time move faster. I really am holding my breath until Well Fed 2 arrives.

    Thank you for what you do!

    • Mel says:

      I LOVE that you’re using Ras el Hanout on roasted carrots — I bet it tastes awesome.

      You’ll be glad to know that Well Fed 2 includes a recipe called “Casablanca Carrots” that is a luscious, Moroccan-inspired carrot salad. It’s SO good. You’ll be happy with it!

      It won’t be long until Well Fed 2 is released. We’re getting the proof this week, then printing starts!

  • Michelle says:

    I am so excited! Can’t wait to try Casablanca Carrots!

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  • Kelley says:

    I roasted these tonight for the first time and I tossed in some turnips, too. I was very impressed with this dish!

  • c w says:

    i love the part about singing a verse of your favorite song to be sure you toss them long enough! made me LOL for real

  • Melissa says:

    I hated carrots. This recipe changed my mind and now I crave them! Thank you.

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