Roasted Carrots and Fennel
- Isabel S.
- Apr 12, 2018
- 3 min read
This is a killer combo. I somehow forgot about fennel, and my love it, so when I noticed it in the store the other week I got excited to come up with some recipes. This recipe was inspired by a recipe I saw on Bon Appetites website. I made the recipe a little more simple and it still tastes amazing. Roasted carrots are one of my favorite veggie sides so this recipe caught my eye. The combo of the carrot with the fennel and purple onion is delicious on its own, but when you add a little bit of mint it really makes it something special. I realize this combo might already be a little radical for some, so if you want to leave off the mint that's totally fine. It's really is good though so I encourage you to try it.
I love serving this with pork roll and mashed potatoes but it's also great to make for meal prep. You can add it to bowls or use it as a side for almost any protein. To me, roasted veggies are more of a cold weather thing, but the fennel and onion make this feel like something you could eat all year round.
I think people have a hard time eating vegetables for two reasons. One, they never learned how to prepare them properly. We all grew up on the canned peas and overcooked broccoli that was sure to turn anyone off from vegetables. Stick with fresh or even frozen veggies and don't overcook them. I can eat most veg lightly steamed with very little seasoning but that gets old after a while so that's where recipes like this come it. This kind of thing keeps you from getting bored with the same old thing which is the second reason I think people don't like eating vegetables. Simple is good but sometimes simple can get boring. Just eating steamed veggies is a sure way to get bored. Heck ya, a big basket of french fries is going to be more satisfying than a bowl of steamed carrots. But, when you season boldly and roasted the carrots they suddenly taste rich and are super satisfying. I still love a good french fry and I would never suggest cutting out fries because we only live once so living without fries isn't an option, but when we can create balance in our diet and actually enjoy it we really start to see healthy living in a different light!
Ingredients
(makes 2-3 servings)
2 fennel bulbs
3-4 carrots
1/2 large purple onion
6 large whole garlic cloves with skins left on for cooking
Sea salt- to taste
1/2-1 TBSP garlic powder
1/2 TBSP smoked paprika
A pinch of black pepper
Cayenne pepper to taste
Olive oil
Fonds from tops of fennel bulb
Fresh mint leaves
Parmesan cheese
Directions
Preheat oven to 375F
Slice fennel about 1/4 inch thick and cut carrots into spears. Drizzle with olive oil and season remember you can add more salt at the end. Mix everything together and lay in an even layer on a baking sheet.
Bake for about 20 minutes. About half way through, stir and arrange in a single layer and add whole garlic cloves before putting back in the oven.
After 20 minutes add sliced onions and return to oven for 10 minutes.
Let cool for about 5 minutes, remove garlic skins, then add chopped fresh fennel fronds/mint/fresh grated parmesan cheese.
Serve warm and enjoy!
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