carrot-y goodness.

i had too many carrots in the fridge. initially, i thought that i would make a carrot cake of some sort. But that seemed a little boring and since it was just going to be me eating this, a whole lot of cake didn't seem like a good idea. So i went looking for a carrot quick bread to make instead. unfortunately, all the recipes i found involved tons of sugar and was pretty much a cake rather than a quick bread. *sigh*

then i had a brilliant idea...! what if i caramelized the carrots like i would onions and put it in a regular bread?! The idea of a savoury carby treat instantly got my attention and decided to see if there was any recipes i could try. Surprisingly, i didn't really see anything that came close to what i was looking for...apparetly caramelized *onions* is a more common thing in bread than it is carrots. :/ So, i decided to turn to my go-to bread recipe and try to make one myself.

what i ended up getting was a nice and slightly savoury bread with a chewy crumb texture similar to french bread. The crust was nice and crunchy without being too crusty. also, the bread left a pleasant carrot-y aftertaste that went well with a strong, aged white cheddar that i happened to pair it with. Munchity happiness! This would be an awesome vehicle for a kick-ass sandwich or served plain alongside a fruit/meat/cheese platter. what a fantastic experimental success!!

No-Knead Caramelized Carrot Bread
(makes one large loaf)

3 cups grated carrots
1 tsp sugar
3 1/4 cups bread flour
1 1/2 or so cups warm water
2 tsp active dry yeast
2 tsp salt
olive oil

On medium-high heat, warm oil until hot. Add the grated carrots and sprinkle sugar on top. Cook carrots until soft and slightly browned. Transfer to a bowl, let cool, then cover and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine flour, salt, and yeast. Add the warm water (about 100 degrees in temp) and mix to create a shaggy dough. If the dough is too dry, add water little by little until the dough is no longer dry but still sticky and shaggy. Transfer to an oiled bowl, cover and let rise until doubled (about an hour). Prepare a sheet of parchment paper to use for the dough later on.

When doubled, add the caramelized carrots and knead the dough in the bowl just until the carrots have been incorporated into the dough. Transfer to the parchment paper, cover and let rise again until doubled (about 30 minutes).

Meanwhile, ready a cast iron pot with a lid in the oven on the middle rack and preheat to 450 degrees. Once the dough is ready and the oven is hot, carefully place the dough and parchment paper in the cast iron and cover immediately with the lid. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes. Reduce heat to 425 degrees, carefully remove the lid, and bake an additional 20 minutes until top is golden brown. Once done, transfer the bread to a cooling rack and let rest 20 minutes before serving.