I recently learned that carrots get their sweetness from living in the frozen ground. The icy frosty soil actually concentrates the sugars in them making for a sweeter carrot. I only know that thanks to someone I follow whose Instagram feed is really delightful – I will find her and link in this post when am not rushing – I’m really keen to share everyone’s favourite carrots with you before Christmas because they really are everyone’s favourites.
The humble carrot is already really delicious – I love them grated in sandwiches with hummus and falafel. Portuguese style they are also lovely – vinegary and garlicky – really moreish. So I guess what I am saying is calling these everyone’s favourite carrots is a bit of a cheat as they are so well liked anyway (aren’t they?) nonetheless, these carrots are delicious.
I find that a 1kg bag of carrots will serve around 4-6 people. That sounds like a lot of carrots but honestly – they all go.
If you’ve got vegetarians coming over feel free to use vegetable stock. If you have vegans over then skip the butter – the carrots will still be great if you drizzle over some olive for the last 10-15 minutes of cooking instead.
Ingredients
1kg carrots, peeled and chopped into batons
3 cloves garlic, crushed
Chicken stock (homemade or from a cube)
3 sprigs of thyme, leaves picked & chopped
1 sprig rosemary, leaves picked & chopped
Salt
Pepper
Large tablespoon of butter
Big glug of olive oil
Method
Put carrots into a large glass serving dish, pour stock over to nearly cover
Add garlic, herbs, salt and pepper
Bake at 180° for around 25 minutes
Remove from oven and add butter and oil to dish
Return to oven for a further 10-15 minutes until carrots are completely tender and a bit frazzled at the edges. 
