Roast Carrot And Avocado Salad With Orange And Lemon Dressing Recipes

CARROT, AVOCADO, AND ORANGE SALAD

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400°F.
• Pound the garlic with a healthy pinch of salt in a mortar until you have a wet, fairly smooth paste. (You can also do this on a cutting board, chopping and mashing and chopping and mashing until you're satisfied.) Put the paste in a large mixing bowl. Add the cumin, coriander, chilies, and 1/4 cup of the olive oil and stir well, then add the carrots and toss well so they're coated with the oil and spices. Sprinkle on 3 healthy pinches of salt, crushing the grains with your fingers as you add them, and toss again.
• Put the carrots in a large shallow baking dish in one layer. Scrape out the extra garlic, spices, and oil from the bowl and spread evenly on top of the carrots. Pour 1/4 cup water into an empty spot in the casserole (you don't want to wash off the tasty oily stuff) and tilt the dish so the water spreads across the bottom.
• Cover the dish tightly with foil and put it in the oven. Cook the carrots for 25 minutes. Take off the foil and keep cooking until the carrots are lightly browned, and about as tender and creamy as avocado flesh, but not so soft that they threaten to fall apart, about 35 minutes more.
• While the carrots are roasting, segment the orange as you would a lemon. Squeeze the membranes into a small bowl to release the juice. Set it aside.
• When the carrots are done, take the dish out of the oven and let it sit until the carrots have cooled a bit but are still warm.
• Meanwhile, take the avocados from the fridge. Halve them lengthwise, remove the pits, and peel the halves. Cut the flesh lengthwise into slices about the same size as the carrots-the slices should be sturdy enough that they don't break up when you toss them.
• Put the avocado slices in a large mixing bowl and add the reserved orange juice, the lemon juice, the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil, and a healthy pinch or two of salt. Toss gently and well with your hands. Push the avocado to one side of the bowl. Add the carrots a handful at a time, scraping and tossing them in the beautiful green liquid in the bowl before adding the next handful. Make sure to scrape out and add all the garlicky spices left in the baking dish. Toss it all together gently, being careful not to break the avocado slices.
• Stack the carrots, avocado, and orange segments on a platter or in a serving bowl so they're facing this way and that. Top with the cilantro and serve right away.

ROASTED CARROT & AVOCADO SALAD WITH CITRUS DRESSING

Steps:

• Don't peel the carrots.
• First, make the herb and spice paste for the carrots.
• In a mortar, combine the cumin seeds, chilli, salt and pepper and smash up with a pestle. Add the garlic and thyme leaves and pound until you have a paste-like consistency. Now add just enough extra virgin olive oil to cover the paste, together with 2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar. Mix together.
• Preheat oven to 180C (350F).
• Cook carrots in boiling, salted water for about 10 minutes or until almost cooked - run a sharp knife into one and it should push through without too much resistance.
• Drain carrots, pat dry with kitchen paper, and put into a roasting tin.
• Pour the spice paste mixture over the carrots and rub in well with your hands.
• Place the roasting tin in the oven and bake carrots for 30 minutes, then add the orange and lemon halves to the tin.
• Bake for another 15-30 minutes until carrots are well roasted and the skins are golden brown.
• (Jamie puts the fruit and the carrots in together, and roasts the lot for 30 minutes. I found this wasn't long enough to get the carrots well roasted and when I left them in longer, the orange and lemon dried out a bit - so the above method is my compromise.).
• While the carrots are roasting, halve the avocados, remove the seeds, scoop out the flesh and cut into wedges.
• Place avocado wedges into a large mixing bowl or salad bowl.
• Heat a medium sized frying pan over a medium heat on the stove and add the seeds. Toast seeds in the frying pan, tossing frequently, until lightly browned. Remove to a small bowl until needed.
• In the same pan, add a good couple of swigs of olive oil and toast your bread slices on both sides. Remove to a plate until needed.
• Now, remove the roasting tin from the oven.
• Using a pair of tongs, squeeze the roasted orange and lemon halves into a bowl (don't worry if some pulp falls out too).
• Add an equal amount of extra virgin olive oil to the bowl along with a tablespoon of red wine vinegar, and season with some crushed sea salt and freshly ground black pepper and mix well.
• Add the roasted carrots to the avocados in the bowl and pour over the dressing.
• Now roughly tear up the toasted bread slices and add to the salad.
• Add the mixed greens and toss the lot together.
• Divide salad between four plates or bowls, spoon a dollop of sour cream on the top of each, sprinkle with the toasted seeds and finish with a little drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.