I love all of the orange color that comes with fall. Carrots have so much potential. They work perfectly with a simple spinach salad, as stuffing for spring rolls, and even make delicious soup. Of course, carrots are also a great snack to keep you going during the day. It's easy to overlook carrots, but using fresh and whole carrots makes for wonderful dishes. There's also no need to buy pre-cut or baby carrots (these are just reshaped whole carrots).
Frozen carrots are great way to add extra veggies in your winter stews. Frozen shredded carrots are perfect for carrot cake or muffins. To freeze carrots, blanch for two minutes, place in an ice bath, let cool and then place in a freezer safe container. Carrots must be canned using a pressure canner or pickled with a safe level of acidity (since carrots are a low-acid food). This dill carrot recipe is a good example of a carrot recipe that can be safely canned in a hot water bath.
Carrots fall into a few different categories (that have many varieties each), often defined by overall shape and size, which often dictates the best soil/growing region for each variety (as carrots often need loose, non-rocky soil to grow)!
Year Round
While you might be most familiar with raw carrots, cooked carrots can have an important role in cooking. Some of my favorite carrot recipes involve roasting, pan frying, braising, and even grilling carrots.
Look for carrots that are firm (they don't bend) and with the greens still attached. Carrots can come in all different shapes, sizes, and colors.
Remove the greens right after buying and store separately. Fresh carrots can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Store the greens in water (changing the water daily) for prolonged storage. Carrots can be stored upwards of a month or more.
