"It's Maaaaa-gic!" Moroccan Carrots
Author Notes:
Never have been one to leave well enough alone (see: 'What's Up Doc' Carrot Vichyssoise), here's another recipe inspired by my favorite Looney Tunes character, who was fond of saying: "Carrot are divine! You get a dozen for a dime! It's maaaaa-gic!"
(Bugs Bunny graphic courtesy Warner Bros. Entertainment)
Serves: 4
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1
pound skinny carrots, scraped and cut into little cubes
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1
teaspoon olive oil
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1
teaspoon each: cinnamon, nutmeg, cumin, paprika (or aleppo pepper, thanks for the introduction, Sagegreen!), and caraway seeds
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1/2
teaspoon ground ginger
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couple cloves of garlic, smashed
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1
14.5 ounce can chickpeas, drained well
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1
14.5 ounce can chopped tomatoes, juice and all
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1
tablespoon honey or other sweetener
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water, if needed
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1/4
cup chopped cilantro
- Cook the carrots in a small amount of salted water until tender, about 5-7 minutes (more if you cut them bigger).
- Meanwhile, heat the oil in a medium saucepan and add the spices and garlic; cook, stirring, over medium-low heat, until the kitchen starts to smell like Rabat or Marrakesh.
- Drain the carrots and stir into the spices along with the tomatoes, the chickpeas, and the honey. Simmer about 15 minutes, adding water if needed; stir in the cilantro, and serve alongside your favorite grain (farro, quinoa, brown rice, etc.)
- This recipe is a Community Pick!
- This recipe was entered in the contest for Your Best Carrot Recipe
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Vegetable|Make Ahead|Serves a Crowd|Gluten-Free|Vegetarian|Side
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We had this with a combination of rice and farro for dinner last night, and I had the leftovers for lunch today with tricolor Israeli couscous. I say this recipe's not only magic but also magnificent!
Every time I make this I always wish I'd doubled the recipe so there'd be leftovers. It is a fabulous recipe. I usually serve the carrots with a lamb shank tagine recipe on food52 but this time I served it with haddock with chermoula (?) sauce and Israeli couscous. I think Ina Garten said its best to stick within the same family of flavor and this carrot dish was perfect. I have to say the couscous was a nice counterpoint and I added roasted cauliflower and some chopped preserved lemons. Next time I might try combining the doctored couscous with the carrots and chick peas.
Both tempting and intriguing, but 1 tsp of cinnamon, really?
Very tasty! I chunked the carrots into slightly larger pieces and roasted them then added them into the pan w/ all of the reduced sauce ingredients. Per LeeLeeBee's suggestion, I used a few tsp. of Pomegranate molasses. Went easy on the nutmeg (maybe 1/4 tsp. of freshly ground) and did half smoked paprika/half Hungarian. This was tasty, fragrant and colorful; we loved it!
I just made this and thought it was delicious! For those like me who often need/want to make things ahead, I just wanted to comment that I made the dish in the morning and then refrigerated it all day. I then reheated it on the stove over a low flame with the addition of a little water, and it was perfect! In fact, I think the flavors further developed as it sat. Thanks for a great recipe!
Thank you for sharing this recipe. It sounded intriguing (I do like flavorful foods, vegetarian entrees, and sweet/savory combinations) so I did not make any alterations. I found this recipe a bit off though. Not bad, just off. I suspect it was the nutmeg and may try again without it. Thanks again.
Aleppo pepper - a.k.a. "magic spice"
I just made this, had a taste and was blown away by the flavour. Admittedly, I was a little sceptical about adding honey as I don't usually like sweeteners in savoury dishes but I trusted the reviewers and was glad I did. This is a really delicious recipe for carrots and the best thing is that it can be a meal in itself.
I can't tell you how many times I've made this recipe. It really is magic.
I found that the recipe needed a touch of acid, so I added about two teaspoons of pomegranate molasses (and omitted the honey).
I am curious, why is the photo (which is beautiful btw) large carrot pieces, but the recipe says to chop into small dice or cubes? These discrepancies make me a bit nuts. Thx.
Really, really great recipe! All the spices make the dish very complex and filling. Great standby, thanks!
Delicious! I might leave out the sweetener next time to suite my taste, but this will definitely be added to my dinner/lunch on the go repertoire. Very satisfying, and very flavorful.
Made these tonight and loved them! My husband commented about 5 times how much he liked them, and they were a hit with my kids too. Going into the rotation!
This is an incredible vegetable dish! So savory and flavorful. I followed the recipe exactly and served with basmati rice and a paprika-seasoned pork chop. Delicious!
Delicious! I didn't change a thing to the recipe either.
So I thought I was making this to go with lamb merguez sausage, but my boyfriend surprised me with fillet mignon tonight. I only added a half teaspoon of each spice, I substituted fresh dill from our garden for the caraway seed, and I skipped the chickpeas (we'll get plenty of protein in the main dish). I paired it with a basic couscous. Hopefully it will all still go well together! *crosses fingers*
Mmmm. I have some merguez sausage in the freezer - sounds like a great combination with this salad.
Love this!!! I used purple and golden carrots from the farmers market as well as orange and fresh heirloom tomatoes. Yumm. The color was great.
I'm making it for Thanksgiving dinner...to give tradition a twist
This is great and I love how simple it is. I will certainly make it again.
these are great. doubled them for a dinner party.
I amo so glad you enjoyed them!
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