MABRRI's Garden Cafe: Carrot Recipes

Carrots pack a nutritious punch and can be used for side dishes, main entrees or in desserts.

Did you miss our first blog post that talks about the Garden Café, which is a collaborative project between Vancouver Island University’s Mount Arrowsmith Biosphere Region Research Institute (MABRRI) and Snaw-naw-as First Nation? Learn more by going to the Zucchini Recipes Garden Café blog post.

Vanilla Caramel Carrots

Ingredients:

6 carrots                                                        2 tablespoons of sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract                            1 ounce of butter (2 tablespoons)

Instructions:

Cut and blanch all carrots. In a skillet, sauté all ingredients until caramelized.

Sweet Potato and Carrot Soup

Ingredients:

2 sweet potatoes                                 8 carrots

1 onion                                                  1 garlic clove

Salt and pepper                                   Parsley

Instructions:

Cut and boil all ingredients until soft. Puree ingredients. Season with salt and pepper and garnish with parsley to serve.

Carrot Cake Banana Bread

Ingredients:

½ cup butter, softened                        ¾ cup of granulated sugar

¼ cup brown sugar                             2 eggs

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour                  1 teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt                                   1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon            ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

¼ teaspoon ground ginger                 ¼ teaspoon ground all spice

1 cup shredded carrots                       1 ½ cups mashed bananas (about 3 or 4 medium bananas)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, cream together butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add in eggs and vanilla and beat until mixed. To the wet ingredients, Sift in flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, all spice, ginger and salt. Stir until just combined. Add in shredded carrots. Mix until combined. Pour in mashed bananas and mix until combined. Pour into two 8x4 greased pans and bake for 30-35 minutes or until the cake tester comes out clean.

Want to add a little bit more sweetness to this recipe? Add some frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients:

½ cup butter                                        8 ounces of cream cheese

1 cup powdered sugar                        1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions:

Cream together all ingredients in a bowl. Spread on your cake and enjoy!