Celebrate spring with this delicious roasted carrot dish. You’ll find more of Sandy Wood’s spring recipes in our September 2019 issue.

(Serves 4)

INGREDIENTS

20 small carrots, scrubbed and tops trimmed, but stems left on

2T extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling

1t flaky salt, plus a few pinches

220g burrata or buffalo mozzarella, drained

3T carrot-top pesto, plus more, to taste

 

FOR THE CARROT-TOP PESTO

4 cups washed carrot tops, stems discarded and roughly chopped, a small handful reserved

½ cup walnuts, toasted

30g grated Parmesan cheese

1 medium garlic clove, halved lengthwise

1t Maldon or other flaky sea salt

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

 

TO SERVE

small handful basil leaves or microgreens

half a lemon

METHOD

1. To make the pesto, combine the carrot tops and basil in a food processor and pulse. Add the nuts, cheese, garlic, and salt. Pulse again. With the machine continuously running, add the oil in a thin stream. Scrape down the sides, if necessary. Season to taste.

2. Heat the oven to 260°C with a rack in the centre.

3. Pour 2 tablespoons of the oil into an ovenproof pan, that’s big enough to hold the carrots in a single layer. Bring the oil to barely smoking over high heat, add the carrots and stir to coat them in the oil. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of salt.

4. Cook, turning occasionally, until the carrots are browning in spots (about 6–8 minutes). They shouldn’t be cooked through just yet.

5. Place the pan in the hot oven and roast, stirring occasionally, until the carrots are tender and cooked through (about 8–12 minutes). Remove from the oven and leave to cool slightly.

6. Toss the cooked carrots very gently, as they’ll be soft, with the prepared pesto, according to taste. Transfer the coated carrots to a platter. Halve or quarter your burrata or mozzarella, depending on its size and place on top of the carrots.

7. Add a few more dollops of pesto and sprinkle each piece of burrata or mozzarella with a little flaky salt.

8. Dress the reserved handful of carrot top sprigs with a squeeze of lemon, a drizzle of olive oil, and a small pinch of salt; top the carrots and burrata with the greens.