roasted carrots with tahini sumac sauce.

I know I've been neglecting this space as of late, but when you are less then a handful of days from your big day and you decide that making 7 batches of cookies for the wedding was a sane thing to do you can see why I may be a little tied up.  

But I have finally finished the cooking dough making (hip hip hooray!) so let's talk about carrots.  

If there is one cookbook I return to time and time again it's Plenty by Yotam Ottolenghi.  I am no vegetarian by any means, but we do treat meat as a once or twice a week treat so I come to rely on cookbooks that make vegetables front and center.  Yotam does that and he does it in a way that makes the vegetables feel new and different so when he came out with a second book called Plenty More, you can pretty much guarantee that I purchased the book almost the day it came out.   I have about half the book marked off (so many projects to tackle soon!) but the recipe that kept catching my eyes was one for Middle-Eastern carrots.  

I took inspiration from Yotam and roasted carrots with warming spices (Zatar!) and then served with a sauce that is a little sweet and a little spicy with a wonderfully bite of tahini.  A sprinkle of mint over the top provided the perfect amount of freshness.  This recipe makes for a killer lunch but it would be pretty awesome as a side dish on Thanksgiving.  

Roasted Carrots with Tahini Sumac Sauce
Recipe inspired by Yotam Ottolenghi 

Serves 2 generously  

For the Carrots

1 bunch of carrots peeled and chopped into 1 inch pieces  
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 teaspoon Zatar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon smoked Spanish paprika 

For the Sauce

1 tablespoon + 2 teaspoons sour cream or Greek yogurt
1 teaspoon tahini
1/2 teaspoon maple syrup or honey
1 - 2 teaspoons water
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon aleppo pepper
1/4 teaspoon sumac
1/4 teaspoon Zatar
1/8 teaspoon smoked paprika
Mint for sprinkling

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Toss the carrots with the olive oil, zatar, salt, and smoked paprika.  Dump the carrots on a baking sheet and roast on a sheet pan for about 40 minutes until tender and blackened in spots. Remove from oven and set aside.

Combine all ingredients for the sauce in a bowl except for the mint and water.  Stir to combine.  Add 1 teaspoon of water and stir to combine.  If the sauce still seems thick, gradually add a little more water until the sauce is thick but smooth.  

Dollop the sauce on a plate.  Top with carrots.  Sprinkle with mint.