Rosemary Roasted Carrots

When we saw the sun for the first time in a looooong while this week, I knew I needed to make these Rosemary Roasted Carrots ASAP.

It’s spring (finally, hopefully, pretty please) and time for super colorful veggies to make their way into our super simple dinners. If you are anything like me, getting veggies into the kids is a challenge, especially in the winter in the midwest.  

Nothing fresh is exciting. There isn’t a farmers market to explore, a garden to pick, or an orchard to visit, leaving me uninspired and the kids uninterested in trying new produce.

Since the winter brings veggies that we as a family don't like to eat raw (broccoli, sweet potatoes, haricots vert, cauliflower, etc) I tend to roast veggies all winter long. Luckily, I have my kids convinced that the char on the broccoli (and sweet potatoes and cauliflower and green beans and, well you get the drift) is what makes them taste so good. This allows me to sneak in other veggies to try (think brussel sprouts) if they have the same black char on them.  However, the selection is still limited, so when I can I like to add in something fun.

Veggies in bright colors are fun!

These Rosemary Roasted Carrots can be made with any color carrots that you have laying around.  However, if you have a Trader Joe's nearby, I highly recommend trying out these tri-color carrots. (This is not an ad, I'm just a big fan of TJ's).

We just love these carrots around here.  

We eat ‘em raw, roasted them up, make carrot fries, whatever your pleasure. Have a little one who can’t yet chew on a carrot? Check out this post to see how I puree these for new eaters.

And carrots aren’t the only veggie that come in three fun colors, despite a conversation I once overheard at a wedding.  I kid you not, adults couldn’t believe that asparagus could be white, green or purple. Fifteen minutes later and some googling, I had convinced them.  

But I digress.

I started making this carrot recipe at the end of last summer when we had grown rosemary and carrots in our garden.  The kids picked the rosemary from the garden. They pulled the carrots out of the ground. They picked the leaves off the stems and helped sprinkle it all over the carrots (yes, all 6 of them that we pulled).

Letting kids help, makes it more likely they will eat what serve.

These make a great side dish to just about anything and are a good introduction to a mild herb for your kids. Roasted carrots go with fish, meatloaf, grilled chicken, or even a big ole pot of soup.

There are never leftovers of these carrots 🙁

I can barely get them to the table with out someone stealing them off the baking tray.

Rosemary Roasted Carrots

2 lb bag tri-colored carrots (or two pounds of any carrots you have)

2 TB olive oil

4-5 sprigs rosemary, leaves pulled off the stem

1 teaspoon sea salt

Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees F

Wash and peel carrots, cut off the very tops.  

Cut the carrots in half lengthwise and then cut into 3 to 4 inch pieces.  Try to keep the carrots the same size so that they roast at the same rate

Spread carrots out on baking sheet.

Drizzle with olive oil, being sure to coat all the carrots

Sprinkle with salt

Sprinkle rosemary leaves over the top

Roast 30-40 minutes. After about 25 minutes, I like to go in and shake pan around to make sure nothing is sticking and carrots are roasting evenly.