As a small organic farm, we grow a lot of carrots — so that means that our small family also eats a lot of carrots!
While it's hard to beat the sweet and earthy flavor of our Nantes carrots enjoyed raw, it's a fun treat to turn a few into savory chip sticks.
Now, it may come as a surprise how quickly little ones can make an entire baking sheet of freshly roasted carrot chips disappear before their parents can get one — so, you might want to plan on more than one batch if you have sneaky wee folks around.
Carrot Chips
INGREDIENTS & TOOLS
• 2-3 medium sized carrots
• 1 - 2 teaspoons olive oil
• Kosher (or favorite salt)
• Fresh-ground black pepper (& other seasonings if desired)
• 2 rimmed baking sheets
• Y-shaped vegetable peeler
Tip: Using a Y-shaped peeler (instead of a mandolin or regular peeler) makes it a little easier to consistently shave off longer, more uniformly thick carrot ribbons.
PREPARATION:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
SELECTING & READYING CARROTS:
Although this recipe works with any size carrot, it's best to choose the larger of the carrots in your bunch. Try to choose similarly sized carrots so that the carrot ribbons are fairly uniform in size. Simply give the carrots a gentle scrub under water; there's no need to pre-peel. Holding the carrot by the stem, shave off a long thin ribbon of carrot using a vegetable peeler. Try to get the peels as uniform as possible and feel free to snack on any pieces that are too small or too thin to use. Place carrot strips in a large bowl.
Gently toss with olive oil, taking care to not break the strips. Start with a teaspoon of oil and increase if needed. Place the carrots on a lightly-oiled baking sheet in a single layer. While the edges can slightly touch, they should not overlap.
Tip: Don't use parchment paper for chips as they don't quite get that crisp.
SEASONING:
Before placing in the oven, season with freshly-ground pepper and your favorite salt or seasonings. While we tend to keep it simple with salt and pepper, chopping fresh herbs like thyme and rosemary into a little salt is also nice. Some folks like to add a little heat with a sprinkle of curry powder or red pepper flakes.
BAKING - KEEP A WATCHFUL EYE:
Bake for 6 minutes before swapping your baking pans from the top to bottom racks. Bake an additional 6-8 minutes until the carrot edges barely start to turn a golden brown. While toasty edges can be delicious, the thin, delicate carrot ribbons can quickly turn from just-right to burnt, so don't stray too far from the oven in the final minutes.
TO CRISP UP THE CARROTS:
Leave the baking sheets in the oven, turn off the heat and leave the oven door ajar for about 2 minutes.
Tip: If you are going to make a second batch and aren't ready to turn off the oven, simply jump to the next step and crisp your carrots by leaving on the counter.To finish crisping the carrot chips, remove from the oven and place on the counter/wire rack to cool. Carefully remove from the baking sheet and enjoy!
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