| Level: | Easy |
| Total: | 1 hr 5 min |
| Active: | 30 min |
| Yield: | 4 servings for lunch, 6 servings as a side dish |
Ingredients
- 2 pounds carrots, preferably with leafy tops
- Good olive oil
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 cup pure Grade A maple syrup
- 2/3 cup dried cranberries
- 2/3 cup freshly squeezed orange juice (2 oranges)
- 3 tablespoons sherry wine vinegar
- 2 garlic cloves, grated on a Microplane
- 6 ounces baby arugula
- 6 ounces goat cheese, such as Montrachet, medium-diced
- 2/3 cup roasted, salted Marcona almonds
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
- Trim and scrub the carrots. If the carrots are more than 1 inch in diameter, cut them in half lengthwise. Cut the carrots in large diagonal slices 1 inch wide × 2 inches long (they will shrink when they roast) and place in a medium bowl with 1/4 cup of olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Toss well and transfer to two sheet pans. (If you use just one, they¿ll steam instead of roasting.) Roast for 20 minutes, tossing once, until the carrots are tender. Transfer all the carrots to one of the sheet pans, add the maple syrup, toss, and roast for 10 to 15 minutes, until the edges are caramelized. Watch them carefully! Toss with a metal spatula and set aside for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, combine the cranberries and orange juice in a small saucepan, bring to a simmer, then set aside for 10 minutes.
- In a small bowl, combine the vinegar, garlic, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Whisk in 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Place the arugula in a large bowl and add the carrots, cranberries (with their liquid), goat cheese, almonds, and the vinaigrette. Toss with large spoons, sprinkle with salt, and serve at room temperature.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 4 servings |
| Calories | 566 |
| Total Fat | 28 g |
| Saturated Fat | 8 g |
| Carbohydrates | 69 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 12 g |
| Sugar | 47 g |
| Protein | 17 g |
| Cholesterol | 20 mg |
| Sodium | 1031 mg |
Reviews
Excellent!!!
This is a DELICIOUS recipe. I served with Ina’s perfect roasted chicken + mashed potatoes. I worked with what I already had in my pantry so I:
1) skipped the oranges / oj
2) used apple cider vinegar instead of sherry vinegar
1) skipped the oranges / oj
2) used apple cider vinegar instead of sherry vinegar
This is one of our favorite salads. However, it tends to be pretty sweet. I recommend cutting back on the maple syrup a little. The goat cheese really helps to cut the sweetness, if you like it.
Question: Would this work with feta instead of goat cheese?
The salad was delicious, but I took it to a party, and when I got there, it was soggy. I felt that the proportions of the liquids may have been off. It was very wet. I didn’t even use all of the vinaigrette. When I make this again, I will make it right before I serve so the arugula stays crispy and fresh. I am allergic to almonds, so I substituted pepitas, and that provided the needed crunch. Overall tasty, just needs some tweaks.
Made this for dinner guests. Really positive response from all. A couple of them raved about it. I used
1 1/2 pounds of carrots and cut back accordingly on other ingredients for 6 servings which was the perfect amount for us. I did follow the advice of one reviewer who said she was not going to over cook her carrots next time. While I used small organic spring carrots there was enough variation in size that even cutting some of the larger carrots in half would not make up the difference in cooking time. Divided into the two pans according to size for roasting including adding the maple syrup. Combined them at end of roasting. Just needed to keep checking with my fork how tender they were. They browned and caramelized beautifully without getting kind of mushy at the end.
1 1/2 pounds of carrots and cut back accordingly on other ingredients for 6 servings which was the perfect amount for us. I did follow the advice of one reviewer who said she was not going to over cook her carrots next time. While I used small organic spring carrots there was enough variation in size that even cutting some of the larger carrots in half would not make up the difference in cooking time. Divided into the two pans according to size for roasting including adding the maple syrup. Combined them at end of roasting. Just needed to keep checking with my fork how tender they were. They browned and caramelized beautifully without getting kind of mushy at the end.
Absolutely fantastic salad. Unusually for me I basically followed it exactly as written and it’s so good. A bit too many cranberries for me but that’s a personal taste thing and I will just pare back a little next time. Only had goat cheese with fig mixed in – amazing. Another total winner recipe from Ina, with thanks!
Good, but requires specialty ingredients that I could not find at my local grocery store, such as Marcona almonds and sherry vinegar. I did find an almond that had the skins removed so I used those and I substituted rice wine vinegar. I also had to sub honey to glaze my carrots because I didn’t have real maple syrup and don’t really use it. Also another pricey ingredient. Lots of different textures and the goat cheese makes it. I halved the recipe because I was only making for 3 people as a side and that works fairly well.
I’ve made this salad at least 10 times! It’s incredible! Be sure to follow the directions and roast the carrots on two different pans. The almonds and goat cheese at the end take this to the next level!
I hesitated to make this recipe because it seemed so different from my usual ones. But because I trusted Ina’s recipes and because of all the good reviews it had I took a chance, and I’m so glad I did. This recipe is delicious. I didn’t have dried cranberries, but I did have dried craisins and used those. The only change I would make next time would be to not overbake the carrots. I felt mine were a little too soft. Will make this one again for sure.