Oh baby, sweet baby carrots steamed or roasted you have endless possibilities. In Hungary we enjoyed with butter and parsley. In Germany it was the steamed version with a touch of vinegar popular. And now in Santa Barbara we cook it in a little brown butter and being close to the wine country we just had to add a splash Merlot.
You can add any mellow red wine or even a Chardonnay for a little more flavor. The wine we used was a Brander Merlot from the Santa Ynez Valley with plum and cherry flavors and it compliments roasted vegetables quite well. For this recipe you could use regular carrots, but the baby carrots are just much more tender and sweeter, plus they look so adorable.
These Brown Butter Baby Carrots make a great little side dish to our Wine Country Roast Chicken or to a light Lemon Chicken Santa Barbara. They are fast and easy to make, taking only around five minutes to cook and you don’t need a whole lot of ingredients if you start our with good quality baby carrots from the Farmer’s Market or local store. Make sure they are cleaned well so there is no sand in your side dish.
Brown Butter Baby Carrots
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp Butter
- 1 bunch Baby Carrots - cleaned
- Sea Salt
- Splash of Brander Merlot
Instructions
- In a saute pan over medium-high melt the butter until it simmers and the color turns to a dark golden brown (be careful it burns easy).
- Add the carrots, salt and splash of wine, cover and cook for 5 to 7 minutes until carrots become tender and fragrant. For even cooking gently move carrots around with a large wooden spoon. The wine adds a little acidity to compliment the wonderful nutty flavor of the brown butter.
