Sweet And Sticky Jerk Carrots With Feta

SERVES 4-6

Carrots stand up well to quite aggressive spicing, and they really deepen in colour and change texture when roasted. In this dish I use my jerk seasoning, which is a wonderful blend of earthy spices. It’s really lovely as a sweet glaze with the salty and creamy texture of the vegan feta cheese. I’m a big fan of sweet and salty flavours in the same dish. This feels like it could be a good weekday dinner with a couple of other sides.

INGREDIENTS:

• 8 carrots, halved lengthways

  Plentiful: Vegan Jamaican Recipes to Repeat Denai Moore

• 1 teaspoon garlic granules

• 1 teaspoon ground allspice

• 2 tablespoons Dee’s Classic Jerk Seasoning (see below)

• 2 tablespoons agave syrup

• 100 g (3½ oz) vegan feta, crumbled

• handful of flat-leaf parsley leaves, roughly chopped

• olive oil, for roasting the carrots

• salt and freshly ground black pepper

PREPARATION:

Preheat the oven to 180°C (400°F/gas 6). 

In a baking tray (pan), toss the carrots with the garlic granules, allspice, a glug of olive oil and some salt and pepper. Roast in the oven for 30 minutes. 

In a small bowl, whisk together the jerk seasoning and agave syrup. After 30 minutes, take the carrots out of the oven and add the jerk and agave mixture. Stir to coat the carrots evenly, then return to the oven to bake for a further 15 minutes until caramelised. 

Once cooked, transfer to a serving plate and sprinkle over the feta and parsley.

DEE’S CLASSIC JERK SEASONING

SERVES 4-5

Jerk is a cooking style native to Jamaica, using a jerk spice which is a combination of allspice and Scotch bonnets as the base. Traditionally, jerk is cooked over pimento wood, for that smoky flavour, and is normally meat-based. Jerk is so wonderfully versatile. I’ve included a few ways that you can incorporate it into your everyday cooking, through my classic jerk, fresh wet green jerk (which is more like a crossover between green seasoning and jerk) and then jerk butter, which is brilliant on vegetables and starchy vegetables. 

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 onion, roughly chopped

• 8 garlic cloves

• 50 g (2 oz) fresh ginger root, peeled

• 1 tablespoon allspice berries

• 1 tablespoon coriander seeds

• 1–2 Scotch bonnets

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 65 ml (2½ fl oz/generous ¼ cup) soy sauce

• zest and juice of 2 limes

• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

• 25 g (¾ oz) black treacle (molasses)

• 2 spring onions (scallions)

• salt

PREPARATION:

Preheat the oven to 180°C (400°F/gas 6).

Put the onion, 6 of the garlic cloves, the ginger, allspice, coriander seeds and Scotch bonnet on a baking tray (pan). Toss with the olive oil and then season with sea salt. Roast in the oven for 40 minutes until everything is caramelised.

Transfer to a food processor with the soy sauce, remaining garlic, lime zest and juice, cinnamon, treacle and spring onions and blend until smooth.

Store in a clean jar and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.

Excerpted with permission from Plentiful by Denai Moore published by ‎ Hardie Grant Publishing, May 2023, RRP $35.00 Hardcover.

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