Pan-roasted carrot with candied walnuts & brussel sprouts

20120430-190203.jpg
Mutant purple carrot, or not…

Did you know, that the common variety Orange carrot that we all know, hails from the Dutch. In fact, Orange carrots are the mutant strain and heirloom carrots were originally purple & yellow, check this out. Here’s a lovely salad, perfect for autumn or spring. With some fresh rolls it’s a light, hearty supper and one I hope you’ll enjoy as much as I did.

Time: 20 mins

Ingredients: (makes a large pan,)

4 x Carrots (I’ve used the purple heirloom variety)
4 x Brussel sprouts (each quartered)
1/4 cup of walnuts,
Carrot fronds or herbs of your choice
Splash of olive oil
2 cubes of Butter
A good drizzle of honey
Salt & pepper to season

Method:

20120430-191434.jpg
Chop and peel the carrots, be careful if you’ve used the purple variety as it stains like crazy! Add to a non stick pan with some olive oil and pan fry on a high heat for 5 minutes or so,

20120430-191335.jpg
Once they start to soften a bit, add the butter and a good drizzle of honey and stir to coat. The carrots should take on a lovely, glossy, sheen.

20120430-191621.jpg
Reduce the heat and throw in the walnuts, again stirring to combine. The honey should caramelise straight away on the walnuts, if not drizzle a little more honey directly onto the walnuts.

20120430-192238.jpg
Add the quartered brussel sprouts and a pinch of pepper & salt if you like too. Lastly I snipped some of the carrot fronds onto the salad, but any herb would be lovely to add some green back into the dish,

20120430-192409.jpg
Caramelised walnuts, sweet glazed carrots and green crunchy sprouts, mmm…