Carrot Pecan Butter

This recipe sounds interesting, and it is! Even better though, is the decadent flavor—this recipe features local GA (and SC) produce. Enjoy!

1 pound peeled carrots or scrubbed organic carrots
2 tablespoons olive or canola oil
1 small onion (about ¾-1 cup)
2 cloves garlic
¾ cup toasted pecans*
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 tablespoons flat leaf parsley, more for garnish if desired
Juice of one lime ~ 2 tablespoons

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Cut carrots into ¾ inch pieces of similar thickness and toss with 1 ½ tablespoon oil. Place on a baking sheet and roast for ~ 15 minutes. Meanwhile cut your onion into quarters and then cut each quarter in half.

Peel the garlic cloves and toss with the remaining ½ tablespoon of oil. After the carrots have roasted about 10-15 minutes add the onion and garlic to the baking sheet (this is to keep them from burning as they do not need to cook as long as the carrots). Stir the carrot mixture around and roast another 15-20 minutes or until everything is nice and soft.

While the carrots finish cooking add the toasted pecans to the food processor and process until a nut butter forms (think almond butter type consistency). Once the carrots, onions and garlic are done, add them to the food processor with the pecans and process until smooth, add the seasonings, parsley, and lime juice and mix thoroughly. Sometimes I will add a tablespoon or two of water to thin this out a little (it varies from batch to batch). Garnish with more parsley or chopped carrot tops?.

Enjoy on bread, crackers, sandwiches and veggies (or by the spoon?).

*To toast the nuts, place a dry non-stick skillet over medium heat and add the pecans to the pan (don’t walk away they will burn quickly). As they begin to heat up you should notice a nice aromatic smell, at that point shake the pan or stir the nuts to toast the other side. Once the nuts are toasted remove them from the heat and the pan quickly to avoid burning. This is an extra step but absolutely worthwhile as the flavor of any nut is greatly enhanced by toasting.

Yield: 1 ¾ cup (Serving size: 2 tablespoons)
Nutrition Breakdown: Calories 70, Fat 6g (0.5g saturated fat), Cholesterol 0mg, Sodium 25mg, Carbohydrate 5g, Fiber 2g, Protein 1g.
Percent Daily Value: 110% Vitamin A