Hello! Welcome back! Skip all the rambling and scroll right to the bottom of this post for a printer-friendly PDF of the recipe only.
Today’s recipe is a shareable delight that I’ve had floating around in my head for quite some time. It’s a fancy veggie plate, one that you can plop down on the table and expect to elicit oooohs and ahhhhs. And ohhhh my god, I can’t wait for you to make it.
It’s a dish I’m calling pizza carrots, and at its core it takes the same form as most of my other much-loved veggie dishes: something simple, elevated with some stellar extras. In this case, that something simple is roasted carrots and those stellar extras are a quick-to-make warm flavored oil that’s spiked with delicious toppings and a ball (or two — sometimes we need two) of burrata.
Tell me more
A few summers ago — five, to be exact — I was on the East Coast for a whirlwind two-week work trip that involved day-long meetings in New York City followed by boozy dinners and parties, and even a weekend in the Hamptons. Ah, to be young and working for an advertising agency that specializes in wine and liquor. Anyways, one of these boozy dinners took place at Dante, a West Village bar and restaurant that had then just been named one of the world’s best bars.
The drinks were obviously incredible, but the food!! All types of deliciousness. I can’t tell you everything we ordered but I do remember we ordered a side of their carrots, probably as an afterthought, but a supporting role they were not. They blew my socks off, and left a permanent impression. Mainly because they seemed so simple, but somehow tasted like… pizza. I wrote “pizza carrots à la Dante” in the note I kept on my phone for recipe ideas for my then-not-yet-launched Instagram account.
I truly don’t remember every detail of those carrots, and at a restaurant that changes their menu so seasonally there’s no way to know what was in them. But the thought stuck with me, and recently I started experimenting with how to bring those flavors to a plate. I’m sooo happy with the results, and I hope you will be too.
Before we start
First and foremost, these carrots are not meant to be a substitute for pizza. I hope you know me better than that by now (very much an if you want the pizza, have the pizza type of gal). I don’t want anyone coming at me saying they’re good but they’re not pizza. Like, I know!! But they do bring those same aromatic, savory elements to something new.
This is one of those dishes that could be an appetizer, could be dinner if paired with a salad, could be lunch for one — could be whatever you want it to be. But, I think it’s just perfect for an aperitivo. Chill a bottle of fruity, fizzy Lambrusco, pick up a loaf of crusty bread for piling the topping onto and dragging through the extra oil, call up your favorite friends, and prepare for heaven on your palate.
The recipe
Serves: 4 as an appetizer
Cook time: 20-25 minutes
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