Tender, sweet and savory Secret Ingredient Honey Garlic Roasted Carrots are the most delicious carrots and easiest side dish EVER with only 10 minutes prep! The ideal holiday (Easter!) side that you will devour like candy!
And I really did devour these carrots like candy. As in I ate my entire test batch of roasted carrots in one sitting. Granted, I halved the recipe so it was only 1 pound of carrots instead of 2, but I was wishing it was 2 because I am thoroughly convinced these Secret Ingredient Honey Garlic Roasted Carrots are the best carrots ever. I can’t wait for you to put them to the test – and Easter would be the perfect occasion! Not only are they incredibly easy, they taste amazing at room temperature, so they would keep and/or transport perfectly if need be. Easy never tasted so gourmet.
Unlike a lot of Easter dishes – or holiday dishes in general – you will want to make these Honey Garlic Roasted Carrots year round because they are just that good and you can just pop them in the oven while you prepare the rest of your meal. They are my modern twist on roasted carrots bathed in the most irresistible glaze that they drink up as they tenderize and the bottoms begin to caramelize – my favorite part.
After you taste these carrots, you might just realize they are the only way to eat carrots from now on. Sometimes grandma’s recipe takes the cake, and other times, re-imagined traditional dishes are unimaginably more delicious like these carrots. Some of my other favorite re-imagined holiday recipes include my Cranberry Apple Pecan Wild Rice Pilaf, Herb Scalloped Sweet Potatoes with Bacon and Gruyere, and my Maple Dijon Green Beans with Caramelized Pecans. You will love them all!
What all these dishes have in common is not only the delectable, fresh flavor combinations, but they are deceptively simple. Win-win! For these Honey Garlic Roasted Carrots, your 10 minutes of prep consists mostly of peeling carrots, then simply whisking together a blend of simple, every day ingredients – honey, olive oil, butter, balsamic vinegar, your bevy of spices including salt, McCormick Garlic Powder, McCormick Ground Mustard, McCormick Thyme Leaves, and McCormick Ground Cumin – and your secret ingredient – apricot preserves! The preserves create an irrestible glaze while complimenting the sweetness of the honey with a slight tang while the seasonings enhance the savory of the carrots so they are perfectly balanced – not too sweet, not to savory, but just right.
After you toss your carrots in the Honey Garlic Glaze, it will seem like a lot of Glaze – but be excited because all that Glaze gets sipped up by the carrots for the most tender, flavor infused carrots.
You roast your carrots for approximately 30-45 minutes. I have made these carrots many times, and the roasting times always vary because the size of carrots vary. If you have thinner carrots, they will take closer to 30 minutes, thicker carrots, closer to 45 minutes, but all you have to do is stick them with a fork and when they are fork tender – you know they are done!
For a truly delicious Easter table with modernized Easter classics that are so good you’ll want to eat them year round, like Apricot Pineapple Chipotle Glazed Ham (drooling!!!) or Buffalo Ranch Deviled Eggs, check out McCormick’s website HERE. And do it with a bowl of Honey Garlic Roasted Carrots.
Secret Ingredient Honey Garlic Roasted Carrots:
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Servings: 6 servings (about 5 carrots each)
INGREDIENTS
- 2 pounds baby/thin carrots peeled, tops chopped off or to 2 inches*
- 1/4 cup apricot preserves
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon butter, melted
- 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- 1 teaspoon McCormick Garlic Powder
- 1/4 teaspoon McCormick Ground Mustard
- 1/4 teaspoon McCormick Thyme Leaves
- 1/8 teaspoon McCormick Ground Cumin
- 3/4 teaspoon McCormick® salt
- 1/8 teaspoon McCormick® pepper
INSTRUCTIONS
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Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Either line a baking sheet with foil and lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray OR spray your baking sheet with cooking spray. See Note**. Add carrots to the center.. Set aside.
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In a medium bowl, whisk together all remaining ingredients and pour over carrots. Toss until evenly coated. Line carrots in a single layer. Bake for 30-45 minutes depending on carrot thickness, until fork tender, stirring after 20 minutes.*** Roast longer for more caramelization. Garnish with fresh parsley if desired.
RECIPE NOTES
*Baby carrots simply refer to young, thinner carrots that are not tough or woody. They can often be found in the organic section of your grocery store. If you want to use different carrots then cut extra thick carrots in half lengthwise and adjust cooking time – carrots are done when they are fork tender or roast longer for more caramelization.
**If you use thinner carrots, you might not want to use foil because the carrots will caramelize better in the shorter roasting time without foil.
***When you stir at 20 minutes, the Glaze will have liquefied and there will seem like a lot of moisture but the carrots will absorb the moisture/Glaze as they continue cooking.
