Glazed, Buttered Carrots & Fennel Seed

Dried and fresh herbs are suitable in different ways for slow cooking. Rather than using one as a substitute for the other I use dried during the cooking process for flavor and perk up the final dish with the addition of aromatic fresh herbs. 

As part of the Herb Garden Weekend at the Chicago Botanic Garden, making a dried-herb mix for herb butter appeared on the menu, and is easily adaptable for slow cooking.

Considerable rainfall certainly hasn’t stopped play in my garden recently. My carrots and fennel greens are just a sample of the vegetables and herbs hand-pulled from my backyard this week.

These tasty orange pickings I tossed with brown sugar, fennel seeds, salt and orange and dotted with butter before slow cooking on LOW. The carrots have a medium soft texture and are a warm, buttery accompaniment to a juicy roast chicken and new season baby potatoes. Alternatively, top with feta cheese, garbanzos and toasted pumpkin seeds for lunch.

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cooking Time:  3 hours LOW

Servings: 4-6

Ingredients

1 lb carrots, topped, tailed and cleaned

2 tbsp brown sugar

2 tsp fennel seeds

1/2 tsp salt

1 tbsp orange juice

1 tbsp butter, cut into small pieces

fennel fronds

Arrange your carrots in the bottom of your slow cooker. In a small bowl, mix the brown sugar, fennel seeds, salt and orange juice. Pour the mixture over the carrots and dot with the butter.

Cover and cook on LOW for 3 hours.

Serve the carrots warm, sprinkled with chopped fennel fronds.

Zen Moment

“Herbs are the friend of the physician and the pride of cooks.”