Like Playing With LEGO

Cooking is building flavours. If you can grasp the concept then sky's the limit. This recipe is so simple, that I'm almost embarrassed to include it. However, I have been asked to add this side veggie dish by someone who enjoyed this dish and also because it is the perfect example of building flavours for a recipe.

This is such a simple recipe, I guarantee you will make this again and again. And I am willing to bet you will add the things you have leftover in your fridge until you have made your own signature side dish.

Maple Glazed Carrots
4 Carrots, Batonnet (or a bag of baby carrots to make life easy)
1 Medium Red Onion, Fine Brunoise (dice)
1 Orange, Squeezed
40 ml White Wine or Vegetable Stock or Water
40 ml Maple Syrup
1 Lemon, Squeezed
Pinch of Ginger Powder
Dab of Butter for Saute
Salt and Pepper to Taste

In a saute pan on medium heat, melt butter until frothy. Add onion and cook until translucent. Add ginger powder and carrots and cook for one minute. Deglaze with orange juice, wine and maple syrup. Bring to boil and cover and turn off heat. After five minutes, remove carrots and reduce stock until syrup. Add carrots back to glaze. Just before serving, add lemon juice and salt and pepper.

Serves 4.

Variations are too numerous to give. However, add anything from pineapple juice to lime juice to tequila to sesame oil to vanilla extract . . . whatever. Feel free to be adventerous with this simply because it is so simple!


When you are making this dish, try tasting the carrots as you go and notice how much they change in flavours. Ask your inner chef what can make this different and appealling to you. Add the ingredients one at a time if you like (the juice, wine, maple syrup, etc.) and concentrate how much flavours blend together.