Good restaurants generally nail the main course, but I find they often fall flat when it comes to preparing veggies. That was not the case at Charlie Bird in the West Village of New York City. It was at this staple New York City restaurant that I enjoyed the most perfect preparation of sweet local charred carrots. While I never got my hands on the recipe, it did inspire me to attempt an interpretation. I’ve made the recipe below for friends and family and each and every time it has been a hit! The plate you are about to make will be licked clean.

INGREDIENTS

• 3 bundles of organic carrots with their stems on
• 2 Tbs of grapes seed oil
• 1 13 oz can of cannellini beans drained
• 2 Tbs of tahini
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 1 cup of parsley
• 1/2 cup + 2 Tbs of olive oil
• 1 tsp of salt
• 1/4 tsp of Maldon salt

LET’S COOK

The Grilled Carrots

1. Fill a large pot with enough water so that the carrots will be submerged. Heat the water to a boil.
2. Wash the carrot sand and trim the stems leaving just the end that connects to the carrots.
3. Clean the carrots thoroughly.
4. Once the water is boiling add the carrots. Parboil carrots for2 minutes then remove them immediately.
5. Coat the carrots with the grapeseed oil and season with 1/4 teaspoon of salt.
6. Grill the carrots on high heat. Once the carrots are charred and blister on both sides (about 4 minutes on each side), remove from heat and set aside.

NOTE: If you are not comfortable using a grill, you can broil the carrots until charred.

The White Bean Hummus

Add the drained beans, tahini, 2 Tbs of olive oil 1/2 tsp salt to a food processor and blend until the mixture is smooth. Set aside. Clean food processor.

The Gremolata

1. To the food processor add the garlic and process until the garlic is minced.
2. Then add parsley, 1/2 cup of olive oil, and 1/2 tsp of salt.
3. Pulse 10 times. Do not want to blend.

Time to Plate

1. On a circular serving platter pour a generous portion of the hummus right in the middle. Smooth it out in a circular pattern so that it covers 90% of the plate.
2. Stack the carrots on top of the hummus.
3. Drizzle the gremolata over the carrots and hummus.
4. Sprinkle the Maldon salt over the entire plate crushing the salt crystals between your fingers as you sprinkle.
5. DEVOUR!

If you love this recipe be sure to check out my Shishito Peppers with Bottarga recipe!