Steamed Carrots with Garlic Ginger Butter

I admit the "foodie" in me got very excited when a new Market Street grocery store opened near my house. I contained my excitement for all of one day and made it to the store the second day it was open! Needless to say this store is beautiful and will serve all of my shopping needs. No more need to drive to several stores to get everything we are looking for. I was very impressed with their selection of organics as well as their specialty items. So armed with grocery list in hand I set out to find baby carrots with tops on as specified in the recipe. I saw the cute little orange carrots but then next to them where these gorgeous little red baby carrots. I couldn't resist! This recipe was really easy to prepare and had great flavor. I found a new product that I used for this recipe, Gourmet Garden's Ginger. It worked really great in this recipe. I like that I can have ginger at the ready and I don't end up wasting a piece of ginger when I only need a little for a recipe.

Steamed Carrots with Garlic-Ginger Butter
Source: Cooking Light July 2008

Be sure to use true baby carrots with tops. So-called baby carrots sold in bags are often whittled-down mature vegetables; their texture will be too tough for this recipe.

2 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound baby carrots with tops, peeled
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon minced peeled fresh ginger
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 teaspoon grated lime rind
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1/4 teaspoon salt

1. Prepare garlic; let stand 10 minutes.

2. Steam carrots, covered, 10 minutes or until tender.

3. Heat butter in large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and ginger to pan; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; stir in carrots, cilantro, and remaining ingredients.

Yield: 4 servings