CARROT RECIPES AND CARROT TIDBITS
FROM THE ORGANIC FARM!

Are purple carrots better for you than orange carrots? Apparently so, according to Dutch Breeder. Here’s the scoop from: www.carrotmuseum.com.

Generations of people in the West have grown up believe that carrots are always orange. But as long ago as 2000 BC, temple drawings from Egypt show a plant believed to be a purple carrot. In Roman times, carrots were purple or white. By the 10th century, purple carrots were grown in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Northern Iran. Orange roots, containing the pigment carotene were not noted until the 16th century in Holland. This only came about thanks to Dutch growers who bred the vegetable to grow in the colours of the House of Orange. Exerts believe Dutch breeders used a yellow mutant seed from North Africa to develop the orange variety and then stuck to it through breeding. Their colours comes from beta carotene with some alpha carotene, a pigment that the body converts to Vitamin A. A Dutch breeder recently studied the health qualities of purplee carrots and believe they give extra protection against various forms of cancer and heart disease. They contain purple pigments called anthocyanins that act as anti-oxidants.

Warning: Cooking with Purple Carrots. Even though they may be more nutritious, purplre carrots will make your carrot soup brown, the colour of light peanut butter. My experience is when they are added to stew, they also colour the stew in an unexpected way. Maybe it doesn’t matter, if you are not cooking for the queen or the Premier, that is! Or maybe that’s why William of Orange directed his gardeners to grow orange carrots.

Everyone has their favorite recipes for using carrots. Here’s mine. Try to follow our Website for more recipes: wwwtheorganicfarm.net
Melba Rabinowitz, September, 2008
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CARROT-MUSHROOM LOAF (Source: Moosewood Cookbook )

We have long misplaced our original Moosewood Cookbook; this is a recipe we have been using for years. It was originally introduced to us by Heather Taylor, my daughter’s friend at Prince of Wales. She was a vegetarian, one of the few we knew back then. We had potlucks on Sunday evening, with an open invitation of, “If you don’t have something better to do, we’ll see you on Sunday .” At least a half dozen teen-agers would show up, some with musical instruments, with or without parents. Heather always brought a vegetarian dish, many of which we continue to make today. This went on for a couple of years, even after Toby moved into an apartment with Heather, in town (St. John’s) and from time to time after she married Bob Patey, a high school friend and a member of the potluck gang. They were among the first members of the Veggie Co-op, have two beautiful girls, who are now around 8 and 10.
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2 C. Minced Onion
1 T butter
1 lb Mushrooms
1 ½ t Salt
1 t Basil
1 t Thyme (or less)
1 t Dill
4 cloves Garlic
1 ½ lb carrots
2 c WW bread crumbs
1 c Grated cheddar
2 eggs
Black pepper to taste.

(TOPPINGS: OPTIONAL)/ Dill, Cheese, Bread Crumbs, Sesame Seeds.

Directions:
Mince onions (2 large ones should do it); chop mushrooms; mince garlic; grate carrot (to produce about 6 c); grate cheddar; beat eggs. Lightly oil a 9x13" baking pan. Preheat oven to 350 F. In a LARGE skillet, saute onions in butter over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Add mushrooms, salt, herbs & garlic; continue to saute for about 10 more minutes.

In a LARGE bowl, combine carrots, bread crumbs, cheese, eggs, and pepper. Add the sauteed mixture and mix well. Spread into the prepared pan and sprinkle with your choice of toppings. Cover the pan with foil. Bake for 30 minutes covered, the uncover and bake 15 minutes more. Cut into 2 x 2" squares (3 or so squares for main dish, but works well as a side dish) and serve warm. Note: Takes a lot of time to prep the ingredients (without a food processor). Light and tasty. Makes good left overs.

CURRIED CARROT AND PEAR SOUP (Source: The Best Freezer Cookbook, 2001.)

1 lb. Chopped carrots
1 lb. Chopped parsnips
1 chopped onion
1 chopped celery stalk
1 per, peel and chopped
6 cups chicken/ vegetale stock
1 bay leaf
1 can evaporated milk
1 tsp. Curry powder
½ tsp. Black pepper and l/2 tsp salt
Grated Ginger/ optional and dash of nutmeg
Chopped fresh cilantro/parsley for garnish just before serving.

In a large pot, add first seven ingredients (up to bay leaf). Bring to a boil, then reduce to simmer, covered, for 25 - 30 minutes or until veggies are very tender. Discard bay leaf. Stir in evaporated milk, salt, curry, pepper and nutmeg. Puree soup in batches using a blender or food processor until smooth. Serve garnished with cilantro or parsley. This recipe can be served hot or cold and goes well with chicken based meals. Veggies can be substituted with any root vegetable and it freezes well for up to 4 months. This is one of those generic recipes, which you can revise, depending on what you have at the time. For example, I often substitute zucchini nubians for the parsnip. In the corn growing world, a nubian is an ear of corn that is small and not fully developed. I used this term for the small zucchini that forms from a bloom that is not pollinated; it will not develop past about 3 inches; if it is not picked, it rots on the vine. And, would be tempted to substitute rutabaga ( yellow turnip but not white turnip).

PINEAPPLE/ CARROT MUFFINS

(December, 1991 - I was looking for candles when I found this recipe in drawer of the side board in the dining room. It was a wadded up little piece of paper, hardly readable, with no directions for mixing or cooking. It seemed as though it might have been carried around in a pocket. There no directions for mixing or cooking. I suspect it came from a friend that we played Bridge with around that time. She always had wonderful snacks and sweets on these rare occasions. Fast Forward to September, 2008. We have a lot of carrots to work up this year, broken and twisted, nubins and pieces. They are not remarkable enough to send in along with their long, green, luscious tops to the restuarant markets we supply with fresh, organic vegetables, but they are healthy and nutritious just the same. We made this recipe - with excellent results, mixing the dry ingredients in one bowl, the wet ingredients in another; then stirring the dry, into the wet. Bake at 350 degrees for around 30 minutes;

Dry Ingredients

l l/2 cups flour
l/2 t. baking powder
l/2 t. baking soda
l/2 t. cinnamon
l/2 t. salt

Wet Ingredients

less than 2/3 cup oil
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
l cup crushed pineapple

Mix wet and dry, then add:
l cup grated carrot
l cup raisins

Cook in lightly oiled muffin tins/ makes 12.