Delicious and nutritious, carrot side dish recipes (Video)

Carrots are delicious and so good for you. But do you want to do serve carrots in other ways than steam for raw? Here are three tasty and unusual side dish recipes that feature carrots.

Carrot au Gratin

4 1/2 cups sliced carrots, steamed till tender
2/3 cup crushed Ritz type crackers
3 tbsp butter, melted, divided
1 shallot, minced
3 tbsp flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 1/2 cups milk
2/3 cup shredded cheese (cheddar, colby, gruyere or combination)

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees
• Combine crushed cracker crumbs with 1 tbsp melted butter. mix well.
• Heat remaining 2 tbsp butter over low heat, then saute shallot until tender. Stir in flour, salt and pepper.
• Cook for 2 - 3 minutes, stirring to prevent browning.
• Gradually pour in milk, stir constantly.
• Increase heat to medium, cook until bubbly and thickened.
• Add cheese, stir till smooth. Fold in carrots.
• Pour mixture into a baking dish, sprinkle with crumb mixture.
• Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes till bubbly and golden brown.

Delicious carrot recipes are sure to please.

Photo credit: 

Connie Glasheen

Carrots tossed with dill butter

2 cups sliced carrots
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp chopped dill
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp fresh ground pepper

• Cook carrots in water until tender.
• Remove from heat and drain.
• Toss with butter, dill and lemon juice.
• Season with salt and pepper

Carrot pilaf with raisins and cashews

1/4 cup margarine
1 1/2 cups uncooked white rice
1 minced shallot
1 cup chopped carrots
1 cup raisins
3 cups chicken broth
3/4 cup uncooked wild rice
2 cups frozen green peas
1 cup cashews
1 tsp salt

• Melt margarine in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Sauté the long grain rice, shallot, carrot and raisins for 3 to 5 minutes or until shallot is tender.
• Pour in broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover pan and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes.
• In a saucepan bring 1 1/2 cups salted water to a boil. Add wild rice, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 45 minutes. Drain, then set aside.
• When the rice/raisin mixture is finished simmering, stir in cooked wild rice, peas and cashews and heat through.

Growing your own carrots is easy, and they taste wonderful. you can find easy tips on growing carrots at Mother Earth News. Here is the website with articles on growing your own food, including carrots http://www.motherearthnews.com.