Marmalade carrots! How the hell didn't I think of this before?? I was recently in South Australia with my family spending WAY too much money on wine (said nobody ever!!). Anywho, we went to Kangaroo Island for the last few days and given all the wine tasting I was doing and my lack of motivation in the kitchen at the end of the day we were having a "gourmet" meal of chicken and carrots. I figured seeing as Mrs AnotherFoodBlogger had been driving me to wineries she deserved a little more than roasted chicken thighs and boiled carrots for dinner. Luckily we were in the land of Beerenberg products and we had some orange marmalade on hand. I lathered up the carrots and into the oven they went.
Now, I'd be lying if I said they were amazing and they certainly weren't "instaworthy" but they had bags of potential. So when I got back guess how many times I made marmalade carrots?? Luckily for me a) my wife doesn't cook so I have free reign in the kitchen and b) they are actually pretty darn tasty. Read on friends and you will get the full recipe below.
Why am I fan of carrots?
Versatility. These little orange suckers go with pretty much anything. You can also use them in pretty much every application - in cooking. Jeez, why always the dirty minds!! Salads, coleslaw, purees, roasted, boiled. From soup to eating them raw with a dip they are so darn good. Not to mention a bag of 'basic bitch' carrots will only set you back a dollar or two. Check out some of the recipes I've posted below to inspire you more than I already am with my marmalade carrots. All the joking aside these guys are also packed with health benefits. What's the number one benefit you remember your parents saying whilst growing up?
- Eye sight - yep that's right. Wanna see in the dark then demolish these bad boys! These guys are a great source of Vitamin A to help you with your vision.
- High in fiber - just incase you know, well. Do I have to smell, oops spell it out? Ok, fiber helps you stay regular............ on the toilet that is.
- Antioxidants - these guys help boost your immune system
- A good source of minerals too
Most importantly though they are hella tasty!
Types of carrots
Carrots weren't originally orange. Shut the front door. Now what's this you say. Yep, you heard me. Carrots are have said to originate in Asia and they were purple in colour! Nowadays thanks to the friendly Dutch carrots are typically orange in colour. Around the 17th century the off shoots of purple carrots which produced yellow and white carrots were cultivated and orange carrots were born. Hence the term dutch carrots! You can defo still get your hands on purple, white & yellow carrots (or rainbow carrots as they are known) these days but typically supermarkets will just carry the orange ones.
Storing Carrots
Best stored at a cool temperature typically they are in an airtight plastic bag in the bottom of the fridge. If you aren't a fan of plastic a) credit to you and b) then store them in an airtight container. Once carrots are exposed to air they start to turn limp. Also, if you buy some beautiful carrots with the greens on top it's best to chop the greens off before storage as the leaves will suck the nutrients from carrots thus killing them quicker. I suggest placing the leaves in water and storing in the fridge as if they were flowers. Carrots tops make a great pesto, perfect for garnish or can be used in salads too so don't just chuck em.
Carrot Inspiration
If you are as big a fan of carrots as I am then here are a few other recipes that might inspire you to cook with this delish orange root veg!
Carrot Cake Cupcakes by yours truly
Miso Maple Carrots (a MUST try recipe) by yours truly
Carrot Tzatziki by Kylie Archer of 'kidgredients.com.au'
Roasted Carrots w/ Feta & Dukkah by Cassie Heilbron of 'Cook it Real Good'
Easy Carrot Souffle by Shanna Jones of 'Dude That Cookz'
Moroccon Carrot Salad by Amy Katz of 'Veggies Save The Day'
I hope that this inspires you all to get cooking with carrots. As always Happy Cooking & Happy Eating Friends!
Ingredients
Carrots
- 6 dutch carrots
- 2 tbsp orange marmalade
- 1 tsp brown sugar
- 25 g butter melted
- 1 pinch salt
Tarragon Oil
- 2 tbsp tarragon chopped
- 1 tsp orange zest
- 1 tbsp orange juice
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp sumac
- 1 pinch salt
Garnish
- 1 orange wedge grilled
- chili flakes
Instructions
Carrots
- Mix butter, brown sugar, salt & marmalade together
- Rub butter mix into carrots and bake in oven @ 180 c for 20-25 mins or until fork tender
Tarragon Oil
- Mix all ingredients together and set aside until ready to use
Grilled Orange Wedge
- To grill the wedge you need to rub the flesh side in oil and sprinkle with salt. Place on a grill pan until it caramelizes.
Notes
Essential Tools
- measuring equipment
- chef knives
- chopping board
- baking tray
- small mixing bowls x 2
- zester
Tips/Tricks
- the sugar in the marmalade will caramelize in the oven so be careful not to to turn it too high. You can place some baking paper underneath to help the clean up!
- the sumac in the oil is optional but I think it adds a lovely flavour to the dish
- if you aren't a tarragon fan then you can substitute coriander or parsley instead
- i used dutch carrots for this recipe. If you are using regular carrots you will need to chop the to smaller wedges to cook within the allotted time or else the sugars will 100% burn
These were delicious 🤤
What a way to sex up the humble carrot!!
I used Gin Orange Marmalade from Ambleside Distillery in Adelaide! So good!!
I'm LOVING the sound of that...........
Wow, I never would have guessed that carrots weren't always orange! Thanks for sharing!
Am totally going to have to try these - that tarragon oil just sounds like an amazing finishing touch too!
Such a delicious idea for a side dish! I'm a big fan of carrots and that tarragon oil sounds to die for
Thanks Sylvie - I honestly cant believe I never used marmalade on carrots before. So darn good
Such a delicious and flavoursome side dish!
Damn right it is 😉 you will have to give it a go with your local marmalade!!
Mmm I love roasted carrots, but have never thought of trying them with marmalade. Will definitely have to give this a go to change things up a bit! Thanks for sharing your carrot inspiration.
My pleasure Gemma - I honestly couldn’t believe I hadn’t done it before. Hope you give it a go and enjoy it
Love it