Getting back to your roots

Noticed those purple carrots at the farmers’ market of late?  They’re maroon on the outside and orange onthe inside and when you slice them, they look rather like a lollipop.
Purple carrots

Purple carrots

No, they’re not artificially coloured nor genetically modified, thank god. The purple colour is due to anthocyanin, the water-soluble pigment in red and blue flowers and red grapes. Crunchy and sweet-ish, these “beta sweet” carrots  are high in the anti-oxidant beta-carotene. They’re great for the school lunch box, grated into salads or served as part of a crudite platter; or try roasting them to accentuate their sweetness. However, don’t boil them because they will lose their purple colour.
Farmers market carrots

Field to Feast stall, North Sydney Markets

Interestingly, orange-coloured carrots are an eighteenth century invention.  Once, the most popular types were purple or maroon (these are still widely grown in Asia Minor, India and South East Asia) and the red variety was the most preferred up until the mid-eighteenth century.  White or yellow ones are still occasionally seen in Europe, though most are fed to animals.  Carrots weren’t always conically shaped either – in Roman and medieval times, they were branched.  Present-day conical carrots most likely originated during the tenth or eleventh centuries in Asia Minor. Today, the carrot, along with the onion is a foundation vegetable in Western cooking –  it is used as a base for stocks, soups and casseroles and is also popular in cakes. Its high sugar content was recognised early and, during the Victorian period in particular, many recipes were devised using carrots in puddings, pies, flans and charlottes.  Carrot cake is one of the few survivors of this once extensive cuisine.  In The Cook’s Garden, I give a recipe for Carrot Cookies.
Purple and yellow carrots at the Farmers Market

Purple and yellow carrots at the Farmers Market

The only vegetable with a higher sugar content is beetroot, that very purple root vegetable. As a child I loathed it because I’d only ever tasted the canned, sliced version.  Both the root and the leaves have regained popularity as fresh vegetables over the past few years and I now love it grated and added to a sandwich. It’s also terrific baked in foil then tossed with orange segments, olive oil, fresh mint and coriander for a vibrant salad. Carrots and beetroot are just two members of the root vegetable family.
Baby white radishes

Baby white radishes

Radishes (the name “radish” comes from the Latin “radix” meaning “a root” and include red, white, black and daikon radishes) turnips, horseradish, celeriac, parsnip, swede, salsify, burdock, wasabi, kudzu and Chinese artichoke are some of the other members. Edible roots were one of the very first foods eaten by humans. They are good sources of dietary fibre and their uses in the kitchen are many and varied.  Celeriac, carrots, beetroot and parsnips all make excellent soups and chips (use a vegetable peeler or mandoline to slice them finely, then deep-fry and drain on paper towels). They’re also good roasted as are turnips, salsify and swedes.  Try sprinkling them with paprika or a cajun spice mix for a different flavour. They’ll certainly make a colourful, tasty change to the roast potatoes and pumpkin which normally accompany the Sunday roast.