Baked Carrots with Butter and Cardamom

• Servings: 4.

Carrots are a favorite vegetable that's easy to keep on hand and their sweet flavor makes them a good choice for soups, stews and grated into salads.

But when making carrots as their own dish, here is an alternative to simply steaming or microwaving them. In this recipe sliced carrots are oven braised with a pinch of ground cardamom, a spice that brings complexity and a touch of peppery-ness to carrots' familiar sweet flavor.  For a more pronounced taste, you can grind your own cardamom from cardamom pods, found in many spice shops and Indian food markets.

Because the carrots bake in a 350° F oven, you can cook them alongside another dish, such as a main course, stew or other casserole that can be in the oven at the same time.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds carrots, peeled and sliced into 3/4-inch discs
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 2 tablespoon water
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350° F.
2. In a medium, ovenproof baking dish or casserole that has a cover (or you can use a piece of aluminum foil), combine the carrots, sugar, salt, cardamom, and water. Dot with the butter and cover to seal the baking dish.
3. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes or until the carrots are tender.
4. Serve immediately.