Buying: Carrots are not only orange - they can be purple, white, yellow and red. I recently bit into a purple carrot and found an orange ring on the inside - gorgeous, kinda like the purple "green" beans! Carrots should be firm, snappy, and bright in color. There's nothing worse than a limp carrot....The stems should not be too dark and if the greens are attached, they should look bright and not wilted.
Storing: Carrots will stay fresh in a plastic bag in the fridge, or in a cool place for about 2 weeks. Carrots can be frozen if they are first washed and blanched for 5 minutes and then cooled. Carrots also can be stored up to 5 months (!) if kept in a box of sand and kept in a cool, dry area. Do not store with potatoes, apples, pears, bananas, or fruits that exude ethylene gas as they will cause the carrots to become unpleasantly bitter. I love the look of the carrot tops pouring out of a non-plastic shopping bag at the farmers market, but remove them as they will draw a lot of the moisture out of the carrots to keep themselves hydrated. Wrap them separately in a damp paper towel. Here is a great list of ideas of what to do with carrot tops.
Medical: The extremely high source of vitamin A is what is what makes people say that carrots help you see better in the dark as well as make your hair curly. The Greeks used to cultivate carrots as a stomach tonic remedy. Eating carrots is known to treat asthma, nervousness, and skin disorders. The orange color, beta carotene, as well as other antioxidants, have been researched to slow cancer. Beet and carrot juice combined is apparently good for preventing diarrhea. Carrots have a high level of sugar, hence their sweetness.
Fact: The leaves, which are often discarded in the store, were once used in replace of feathers in Elizabethan hats.
here's a post I wrote about store bought vs home grown carrots: http://shaunaryan.blogspot.com/2010/08/labels-location-whats-difference.html
I remember reading a horrible story about baby carrots that made me never want to buy them again, I'm still looking for it but here's a little summary: http://www.triliumhealth.com/article.asp?ID=105&title=There%20is%20nothing%20innocent%20about%20these%20baby%20carrots
Cooking: Carrots can be eaten raw or cooked in various ways - steamed, roasted, stewed, baked, caramelized, pickled, stir-fried, probably microwaved...young carrots eaten raw with be the most sweetest whereas older carrots will need to be peeled and will have a harder core. Carrots can be shredded into salads or coleslaw. They can be cut into sticks for snacks or crudite platters. You will find carrots as an integral part for making homemade stock. Carrots are naturally sweet when eaten raw, but by caramelizing them or adding fennel seeds, chervil, parsley and celery leaves will bring out their flavor (they are related to parsley, fennel, dill, caraway, cumin and parsnips). Carrots can be washed and scrubbed, topped and tailed, but they do not need to be peeled unless they have been sprayed and are old, wilted, and hairy.
Recipes:
Italian Carrot Cake and Roasted Carrot Soup
I love this recipe of Jamie Oliver's for Roasted Carrot and Avocado Salad....Delish!
Storing: Carrots will stay fresh in a plastic bag in the fridge, or in a cool place for about 2 weeks. Carrots can be frozen if they are first washed and blanched for 5 minutes and then cooled. Carrots also can be stored up to 5 months (!) if kept in a box of sand and kept in a cool, dry area. Do not store with potatoes, apples, pears, bananas, or fruits that exude ethylene gas as they will cause the carrots to become unpleasantly bitter. I love the look of the carrot tops pouring out of a non-plastic shopping bag at the farmers market, but remove them as they will draw a lot of the moisture out of the carrots to keep themselves hydrated. Wrap them separately in a damp paper towel. Here is a great list of ideas of what to do with carrot tops.
world's smallest carrot!!
the inside of a purple carrot....orange!
here's a post I wrote about store bought vs home grown carrots: http://shaunaryan.blogspot.com/2010/08/labels-location-whats-difference.html
I remember reading a horrible story about baby carrots that made me never want to buy them again, I'm still looking for it but here's a little summary: http://www.triliumhealth.com/article.asp?ID=105&title=There%20is%20nothing%20innocent%20about%20these%20baby%20carrots
Cooking: Carrots can be eaten raw or cooked in various ways - steamed, roasted, stewed, baked, caramelized, pickled, stir-fried, probably microwaved...young carrots eaten raw with be the most sweetest whereas older carrots will need to be peeled and will have a harder core. Carrots can be shredded into salads or coleslaw. They can be cut into sticks for snacks or crudite platters. You will find carrots as an integral part for making homemade stock. Carrots are naturally sweet when eaten raw, but by caramelizing them or adding fennel seeds, chervil, parsley and celery leaves will bring out their flavor (they are related to parsley, fennel, dill, caraway, cumin and parsnips). Carrots can be washed and scrubbed, topped and tailed, but they do not need to be peeled unless they have been sprayed and are old, wilted, and hairy.
Recipes:
Italian Carrot Cake and Roasted Carrot Soup
I love this recipe of Jamie Oliver's for Roasted Carrot and Avocado Salad....Delish!
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