Honey Glazed Baby Carrots

Beautiful baby carrots make an elegant side dish that's a great accompaniment for meats like ham, pork, chicken, or veal. These flavorful glazed carrots have the perfectly balanced with just the right amount of lemon juice to offset the honey and brown sugar. Quick and easy to make. I used 1 1/2 pounds of carrots, but there's definitely enough glaze for 2 pounds.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American, Carrots

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 35

Total Time 40

Servings servings

Author tanyabee

Ingredients

1 1/2 to 2 pounds baby carrots
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt more to taste
2 ounces 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley or chives, for garnish

Instructions

Gather the ingredients.
Place the baby carrots in a large saucepan. Cover with water and add the salt. Bring to a boil.
Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and continue cooking until crisp-tender, about 15 minutes (begin checking for doneness after 10 minutes). Drain and set aside.
In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the honey and brown sugar and cook, stirring continuously, until the sugar is dissolved.
Stir in the lemon juice. Increase the heat to medium-high. Return the reserved carrots to the pan. Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the glaze thickens slightly and coats the carrots.
Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper to taste. Serve garnished with the parsley.
Oven-Glazed Carrots Variation

If you don't have time to be near the stove, follow these steps:

Preheat the oven to 350 F.
Blanch the carrots in boiling water with salt for 5 minutes.
In a bowl, mix melted butter, honey, sugar, lemon juice, and salt and pepper.
Add the carrots to the butter and mix well. Transfer to a baking dish.
Bake, covered, for 15 minutes and uncovered for an extra 10.
Garnish with parsley and serve.
Crunchy and Tangy Toppings

Crunchy ingredients can bring a whole different experience to these tasty carrots. Chose one addition and add 2 tablespoons of it:

Sesame seeds, black or white
Sliced almonds or chopped cashews
Pepitas or sunflower seeds—great for nut-free diets.
The addition of cheese can also give an extraordinary tang to the dish. Simply mix in 1/4 cup of Parmesan or Pecorino Romano.

Notes

Commonly mislabeled, true baby carrots are young carrots that are harvested before reaching their mature state. As such, they have the appearance of miniature carrots, with ridges, wrinkles and all, plus bright green tops. What is usually found in stores is baby-cut carrots, or mature big carrots that are cut into baby carrot shapes and sizes to imitate the real product. If possible, try finding baby carrots, as their flavor is incomparable. In a pinch, use baby-cut carrots or larger carrots cut in 2-inch chunks.
https://www.thespruceeats.com/simple-honey-glazed-baby-carrots-3052490