Candied Carrots

Another side dish worth noting were these delicious candied carrots we made for Easter. They were so sweet and sticky, you wouldn't believe you were eating a vegetable.

Ingredients:

1 bunch young carrots, with tops
1/4 cup olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1 orange, zested and halved
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Cut off all but 1-inch of the carrot tops, leaving a little green. Put the carrots in a large shallow pan, add the oil, and season with salt and pepper. Turn to coat the carrots. Stick them in the oven and bake for 30 minutes, until the carrots are fork-tender.

In the meantime, melt the butter in a skillet over medium-low heat. Swirl the pan around and cook until the butter begins to become brown and nutty. Squeeze in the juice from the orange halves, add the zest, brown sugar, cumin and cinnamon and continue to cook for 2 minutes or until syrupy.

Remove the carrots from the oven, drizzle the orange brown butter over the carrots and serve.

Horseradish Mashed Potatoes with Balsamic Carmelized Onions

I'm always looking for new ways to spruce up classic side dishes and I love experimenting by adding different ingredients to mashed potatoes.....nowadays, you can go into any Steak House and find "Blue Cheese Mashed" or "Loaded Mashed" but I wanted something a little more unique. SO, when I went home for Easter dinner and was told we were making mashed potatoes I decided to come up with something new.....they were a huge hit!

Ingredients:
1 stick butter
3 med-large white onions, sliced thinly
3 T. balsamic vinegar
2 T. chopped fresh Thyme

3 1/2 lbs. potatoes (yukon gold, russets), peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces
6-8 T. milk
6 T. butter
1/4 cup prepared white horseradish

Melt 1/4 cup butter in large skillet over medium heat. Add onions; sauté until deep golden, about 30 minutes. Add vinegar and thyme. Reduce heat to low; sauté 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, cook potatoes in large pot of boiling salted water until very tender, about 20 minutes. Drain. Return to same pot; mash until smooth. Add 6 tablespoons milk, horseradish and 6 tablespoons butter; stir to blend. Thin with 2 tablespoons milk if necessary. Season with salt and pepper.

Transfer potatoes to serving dish. Spoon onion mixture atop potatoes. (Can be prepared 8 hours ahead. Cover with foil and refrigerate. Rewarm in 350°F oven about 30 minutes.) Serve hot.