Most honey-glazed carrot recipes call for a mild, runny honey - and the result is fine, but sweet on sweet. This one uses heather honey instead, and the slight bitterness it brings is exactly what pulls the dish together. Carrots roast down until their edges caramelise, thyme perfumes the tray, and the heather honey’s depth keeps the whole thing from tipping into sugar territory.
Tips from Niamh: Heather honey has a slight bitterness to it, and that’s exactly what balances the sweetness of the carrots - a lighter honey would just make them sweeter. It’s one of the few cooked dishes where I do reach for the heather, because that depth is what the dish needs. (If you’d rather keep your heather for the cheese board and no-cook treats, our Clear honey does a lovely everyday job here too.) Add a fresh drizzle and a few thyme leaves right at the end so they don’t catch in the oven.
Ingredients
- 600g carrots, halved lengthways (or whole baby carrots)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp Peninsula Heather Honey, plus a little to finish
- A few sprigs of fresh thyme
- Sea salt and black pepper
Method
- Heat the oven to 200 C.
- Toss the carrots on a roasting tray with the olive oil, heather honey, the leaves from most of the thyme, and a good pinch of salt and pepper.
- Roast for 30-35 minutes, turning once, until caramelised and tender.
- Finish with a little extra honey, the remaining fresh thyme and a pinch of sea salt.
Worth knowing: spoon the heather honey onto the tray and toss everything together, and it coats the carrots perfectly once it hits the heat. If you’d like to read more about what makes it different, the heather honey guide covers its flavour, texture, and the other places it works well. These carrots are good alongside almost anything, and if you’re serving them as part of a spread, the cranachan makes a strong follow for dessert.