A young mother with her baby in arms was shopping the store
recently. As I walked up to greet them, I said to the little
boy,
”
You really like your carrots, don’t you?
”
A young mother with her baby in arms was shopping the store recently. As I walked up to greet them, I said to the little boy, “You really like your carrots, don’t you?”
Right on cue, he flashed a beautiful smile and bounced back into his mom’s arms as she said, “How did you know?”
It was more than the orange glow in his skin that gave away his secret, even though that was the first clue. He had a healthy appearance and a happy personality along with the tell-tale orange undertones. Oh, the power of nutrition. And of carrots.
Carrots are actually a member of the parsley family, easily recognized as such because of those long, lacy green leaves that look a little like parsley. But it is those long, slender, edible orange roots that we know and love so much.
It was not only your own wise mother who knew you needed to eat more carrots “for your eyes.” It appears that carrots have been renowned for more than 2,000 years for their health-giving properties, especially for their high vitamin A content.
However, they were not very popular in the 1800s and took a back seat to the then popular parsnip. Even Mary Lincoln mentioned in her famous cookbook, “Mrs. Lincoln’s Boston Cook Book,” that one could substitute carrots if necessary for parsnips if you were out of parsnips at the time.
The best carrots are young and slender. Little short baby carrots are tender and easy to eat, but because of their lack of maturity, they are not as flavorful as their full-grown siblings. And try to avoid buying the very mature ones that are piled high in the produce bins, especially if they have already cracked open a little. Instead, whenever you can, purchase a bunch of fresh slender carrots that still have their green tops on.
Buying them with the green tops intact assures you they are still very fresh. Don’t bother to buy the bunch if the greenery is wilting and browning. The carrots should be crisp and firm.
Just as soon as you can, remove the greenery as it will rob the carrots of some moisture and vitamins as the plant is still trying to stay alive by sending nutrients to the top.
To prepare carrots for eating, all you need to do is rinse and cook. Sometimes it is necessary to use a vegetable peeler or a stiff brush to gently peel or scrape away the skin a little if it appears rough and dark.
But why cook? Just wash and eat these powerhouse vegetables so that your skin will glow and perhaps one day you can toss out those reading glasses. Maybe Grandma was right.
And, by eating a lot of the highly pigmented vegetable, your skin may take on a little shallow orange tone. But, enjoy it. Some people use make-up to look natural; others eat more carrots.
Stir-Fry Carrots with Herbs
1-2 pounds fresh tender carrots
1 large red onion
4-5 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 sprigs fresh parsley
1-2 teaspoons snipped fresh oregano
1/2 teaspoon snipped fresh thyme
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
freshly ground peppercorns to your taste
Wash and peel or scrape the carrots. Shred coarsely. Slice the onion into rings. Slice or mince the garlic.
In a heavy bottomed wok or stir fry pan, heat the olive oil just until it gives off a little haze but not smoking. Do not get it too hot. Add the carrots, onions, and garlic.
Using a heat resistant spatula, stir and cook over medium high heat until crisp/tender, about 5 minutes.
Add the herbs and stir fry 2-3 minutes more. Add lemon juice, salt and pepper, toss and serve.
Carrot and Orange Muffins
1 cup coarsely grated fresh carrots
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 teaspoon freshly grated orange zest
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons orange juice
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons honey
2 egg whites
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place paper baking cups into muffin pans. Grate carrot and set aside.
In mixing bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder, cinnamon and slat. In another bowl, whisk together the zest, juice, milk, oil, honey and egg whites.
Stir in the carrots. Pour the liquid ingredients and fold into the dry mixture with a rubber spatula until dry ingredients are moistened. Do not over-mix.
Scoop batter into muffin cups and bake 20-25 minutes.
Makes approximately 20
Carrots Deluxe
1/4 cup honey mustard
1 tablespoon butter or olive oil
juice of 1 lemon
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 bunch small fresh carrots purchased with the green tops intact
Combine mustard, butter, lemon and salt in pan and cook several minutes.
Wash carrots. In a microwave safe casserole with lid, cook carrots 3-5 minutes without adding any water. Drizzle with the glaze and serve.
