Ginger and Honey Glazed Carrots

I know I may be in the minority, but I've always loved carrots.  I'll eat them raw with hummus, roasted alongside some beef, or glazed on their own.  One of my favorite ways to cook them is with a bit of butter and honey to add some just a bit of sweetness to them.  

I had seen a recipe by Alton Brown for some ginger and butter glazed carrots quite some time ago and ended up adding some honey to Alton's original take on the dish.  We were recently gifted some honey by a family friend who keeps bees (not sure what the official name for this is....would he be a bee-keeper??) and I simply couldn't pass up the opportunity to add some of this gooey goodness to the carrots.  

I was a bit skeptical when I saw that Alton's recipe called for the use of ginger ale soda to achieve the ginger taste, but I have to admit it made the dish so incredibly quick and easy to put together.  I'm sure you could achieve this same affect through the use of freshly grated ginger, but since I had just enough ginger ale left in our fridge I decided to give the soda method a go. 

And what do you know...it worked.  The ginger flavor wasn't incredibly prominent, but it was still there.  The flavor was so great and the dish was so easy to put together that it is now my go-to when I need a vegetable side dish in the future.

Enjoy!

PS Not sure why the carrots are flaming red/orange in the pics...trying to fix that.

Ginger and Honey Glazed Carrots adapted from Alton Brown

Printable Version

1 lbs carrots, peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick

1 C ginger ale soda

3 Tbsp unsalted butter

1 Tbsp honey

1/4 tsp salt

1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley

In large sautee pan over medium heat, combine carrots, ginger ale, butter, honey and salt.  Cover and bring to simmer.

Simmering in all that butter and honey goodness.

Reduce heat to medium-low and allow to cook until carrots are tender, approximately 20-25 minutes depending on thickness of carrots.  Stir occasionally.

During this time the liquid will also reduce and thicken to a glaze.  

Pour carrots into serving dish and toss with fresh parsley.  Serve immediately.