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This is my go-to recipe when I need to add some vegetables to round out a meal. It is easy to prepare and cooks quickly and is as delicious at room temperature as it is piping hot. The glaze brings out the natural sweetness of the carrots without overwhelming them, and the salt and dill add interest. I served this alongside grilled prime rib, mashed potatoes and roast asparagus at my family’s Simple Easter dinner this year and it added the perfect sweet touch to a savory meal.

The reason I refer to this as weeknight glazed carrots is because I usually don’t save this recipe for special occasions. In fact at holidays we’re usually enjoying my Grandmother’s carrots in wine sauce. Glazed carrots is something I regularly serve on weeknights or if we’re having one or two friends over. Back when I was a working mom this was the recipe that I turned to night after night because it was so simple yet so good.

Adapted from Martha Stewart’s Glazed Carrots.

Once you get in the habit of making this, you probably won’t need to look at the ingredients. Just eyeballing it is fine. And of course you can double or triple the recipe, but I wouldn’t recommend halving it unless you enjoy disappointment. Even if it’s just the two of you it is extremely easy to eat all four portions.

• 1 1/2 pounds, or about half a bag
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 tbs sugar, possibly a little more
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tbs dried dill
• thorough grinding of pepper

– Wash and peel the carrots, if you like (they soften down easily in this recipe so depending on their looks I often keep them for nutritive purposes) and chop into 2-inch lengths. To keep them uniform in cooking time I cut the thicker ends a bit shorter and the thinner ends longer.

– Add all ingredients except pepper to a skillet to a boil. Cover with a lid, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for about 6 minutes, until much of the water has evaporated and carrots are tender.

– Remove lid and return to high heat. Cook for about three more minutes, tossing occasionally, until water is gone and carrots slightly caramelize. Add a thorough grinding of black pepper and serve.

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