roasted carrots with whipped goat cheese and matbucha
This is my new go-to side dish! Roasted carrots take kindly to the creamy goat cheese and heat from the matbucha. Boiling the carrots before roasting them prevents them from shriveling. Play around with the plating! Whether you try this on a random weeknight or bring it to a dinner party, you’re going to love these showstopping carrots.
Ingredients
For the carrots
- 1 pound carrots about 7 medium carrots, peeled and cut in half lengthwise
- 1 tsp olive oil extra virgin
- Salt to taste
For the whipped goat cheese
- 10½ ounces goat cheese one large log
- ½ cup plain Greek yogurt any fat content works, but I used nonfat!
For serving
- ¼ cup matbucha*
- Juice of ¼ lemon
- 1 serrano pepper thinly sliced (optional)
- 1 sprig thyme leaves removed (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Once it’s boiling, add the carrots and boil for about 5 minutes, until the carrots are tender-crisp. They should be a bit soft around the edges but still crisp in the center. They shouldn’t be mushy!
- Remove the carrots from the water and dry thoroughly with paper towels. Place the carrots in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Drizzle with the oil and salt to taste. Use your hands or tongs to move the carrots around, making sure all carrots are coated in the oil and evenly salted.
- Roast the carrots for 12-15 minutes, until they are soft and starting to get brown and crispy at the edges.
- While the carrots are roasting, prepare the whipped goat cheese. Add the goat cheese and yogurt to a food processor and process until smooth. If you don’t have a food processor, you can beat everything together with a hand mixer or stand mixer. Just place the goat cheese and yogurt into a bowl or your stand mixer bowl, and mix on medium speed until smooth.
- Remove the carrots from the oven. Using a large spoon, spread the whipped goat cheese on a serving plate. Dollop the matbucha on top, and spread it around a little bit. Lay the carrots on top. Give a squeeze of lemon juice and garnish with more whipped goat cheese, serrano, and thyme.
Notes
- I used Saturday Sauce matbucha. NY Shuk also makes a great one. If you can’t find matbucha near you, substitute harissa or make your own!
- You can use whatever garnish you’d like. I used what I had on hand. Cilantro, mint, and parsley would be lovely with this!
- You’ll likely have some whipped goat cheese leftover. Try it on toast, spread on crackers, in a salad, or with strawberries!