Roasted Carrots With Avocado Food

ROASTED CARROT AND AVOCADO SALAD

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400 degrees. In a small food processor or a mortar, pulse or pound the garlic with the cumin, thyme, chile flakes, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 3/4 teaspoon pepper to make a paste. Add vinegar and 2 tablespoons of the oil, and mix well.
• Arrange carrots in a roasting pan and spread spice paste on top. Place orange and lemon halves, cut side down, on carrots. Roast until carrots are tender and starting to brown, about 45 minutes.
• Using tongs, arrange carrots on a serving platter. With a dishtowel to protect your hands, squeeze juice from the roasted orange and lemon halves into a measuring cup. You should have about 1/2 cup juice. Beat in remaining 2 tablespoons oil. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle some of this sauce over the carrots.
• Arrange avocado over carrots, then scatter sprouts on top. Drizzle with reserved sauce, top with dollops of sour cream and a sprinkling of the seeds. Serve.

ROASTED CARROT AND AVOCADO PANZANELLA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• On a large rimmed baking sheet, toss the bread with 1/4 cup of the olive oil and season generously with salt and pepper. Spread in an even layer and bake for about 12 minutes, until golden and almost crisp. Transfer to a bowl and let cool. Keep the oven on.
• Meanwhile, in a large bowl, toss the carrots, 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, and the coriander and cumin seeds. Squeeze the orange and lemon over the carrots, then add the squeezed fruit to the bowl, too. Season generously with salt and pepper and toss to mix. Spread on two large rimmed baking sheets and roast for about 25 minutes, until lightly charred and tender. Let cool; discard the orange and lemon.
• In a small bowl, whisk together the vinegar, shallot, mustard, and the remaining 6 tablespoons olive oil. Season the vinaigrette with salt and pepper.
• On a large serving platter or in a serving bowl, gently toss the bread, carrots, and avocados with the vinaigrette. Add the watercress, season with salt and pepper, and toss to mix. Serve at room temperature.

ROASTED CARROT AND AVOCADO SALAD

Steps:

• Roast the carrots: Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Toss the carrot chunks in a medium bowl with two tablespoons of the olive oil, cumin and as generous of a helping of salt and pepper as you like. (We like a lot. Especially with sweet things like carrots.).
• Spread them on a roasting sheet and roast for about 20 minutes, or until tender and browned. Of course, roasting time will vary depending on the thickness of your carrots. Our heftier chunks took over 30.
• Finish the salad: Once the carrots are roasted, arrange them on a serving platter with slices of avocado on top. Drizzle the salad with the last tablespoons of olive oil, lemon juice and extra salt and pepper, if it needs it. Eat immediately.

ROASTED CARROT & AVOCADO SALAD WITH CITRUS DRESSING

Steps:

• Don't peel the carrots.
• First, make the herb and spice paste for the carrots.
• In a mortar, combine the cumin seeds, chilli, salt and pepper and smash up with a pestle. Add the garlic and thyme leaves and pound until you have a paste-like consistency. Now add just enough extra virgin olive oil to cover the paste, together with 2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar. Mix together.
• Preheat oven to 180C (350F).
• Cook carrots in boiling, salted water for about 10 minutes or until almost cooked - run a sharp knife into one and it should push through without too much resistance.
• Drain carrots, pat dry with kitchen paper, and put into a roasting tin.
• Pour the spice paste mixture over the carrots and rub in well with your hands.
• Place the roasting tin in the oven and bake carrots for 30 minutes, then add the orange and lemon halves to the tin.
• Bake for another 15-30 minutes until carrots are well roasted and the skins are golden brown.
• (Jamie puts the fruit and the carrots in together, and roasts the lot for 30 minutes. I found this wasn't long enough to get the carrots well roasted and when I left them in longer, the orange and lemon dried out a bit - so the above method is my compromise.).
• While the carrots are roasting, halve the avocados, remove the seeds, scoop out the flesh and cut into wedges.
• Place avocado wedges into a large mixing bowl or salad bowl.
• Heat a medium sized frying pan over a medium heat on the stove and add the seeds. Toast seeds in the frying pan, tossing frequently, until lightly browned. Remove to a small bowl until needed.
• In the same pan, add a good couple of swigs of olive oil and toast your bread slices on both sides. Remove to a plate until needed.
• Now, remove the roasting tin from the oven.
• Using a pair of tongs, squeeze the roasted orange and lemon halves into a bowl (don't worry if some pulp falls out too).
• Add an equal amount of extra virgin olive oil to the bowl along with a tablespoon of red wine vinegar, and season with some crushed sea salt and freshly ground black pepper and mix well.
• Add the roasted carrots to the avocados in the bowl and pour over the dressing.
• Now roughly tear up the toasted bread slices and add to the salad.
• Add the mixed greens and toss the lot together.
• Divide salad between four plates or bowls, spoon a dollop of sour cream on the top of each, sprinkle with the toasted seeds and finish with a little drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.