Description
These roasted carrots with carrot top pesto is one of my all-time favorite side dishes. The serving size can vary depending on your needs. I usually plan on 2 medium carrots per person (we slice them length-wise), or 1 carrot per person if there are many side dishes. Use more if using small carrots.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
For the Roasted Carrots:
- 8–10 medium to large rainbow carrots, cleaned, tops removed and reserved, leaving about an inch of the green stem on top, sliced in half lengthwise (leave small or thin carrots whole). No need to peel them if they are clean.
- 2–3 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
- Sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
For the Carrot Top Pistachio Pesto:
- 1 small garlic clove, minced in the food processor (see note in recipe)
- 2 cups lightly packed clean carrot top greens (use the tender greens towards the very tops, and discard the thicker stems closer to the carrots)
- 1 cup basil leaves
- 1/2 cup shelled unsalted pistachios (I buy these in the bulk section of the grocery store)
- 1/4 cup unsalted pepitas (a.k.a. green pumpkin seeds; I buy these in the bulk section of the grocery store)
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- A heaping 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- A few spins (or a pinch) of freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
Roast the carrots:
- Preheat the oven to 425°F.
- Prepare the carrots by cleaning and thoroughly drying them.
- Remove and reserve the cleaned greens for the pesto — we like to leave about one inch of the green stem on top of the carrots for a rustic look.
- Slice the medium to large carrots in half lengthwise (leave small or thin carrots whole). Brush or toss the carrots with extra-virgin olive oil to lightly coat, then lightly sprinkle with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
- Roast for 25–35 minutes until slightly caramelized, turning the carrots over halfway through to ensure even cooking. If they brown too quickly before becoming tender, turn the oven to 400°F and cover with foil, then let roast 5-10 minutes to soften.
While the carrots roast (or the day before), prepare the pesto:
(Note: if you don’t have a food processor, you can make your pesto by finely chopping all ingredients and mixing in the oil, or use a mortar & pestle. The below instructions are for a food processor:)
- Place the garlic clove in the food processor by itself and process until minced. Scape it down off the sides.
- Add the rest of the pesto ingredients (except the extra-virgin olive oil) to a food processor, then secure the lid.
- Turn on and drizzle in the olive oil while the food processor is on to create the pesto. Process for about 30 seconds while drizzling the olive oil until the desired texture is achieved.
- Scrape down the sides, then pulse a few more times. Adjust the salt if needed.
Assemble:
- Remove the carrots from the oven and let them cool for 15 minutes.
- Plate on a large platter, then top with Carrot Top Pistachio Pesto.
- The carrots are best roasted on the day of serving. The pesto can be made up to one day in advance.