what you should know

The carrot is the Emmylou Harris of vegetables, best known for backing harmonies but really deserving of more attention for the solo work.

To wit, look up carrot in the index of most cookbooks and you'll find plenty of dishes that have carrot in them. What you won't find a lot of are carrot recipes -- recipes with "carrot" in the title. 

 
Which is a shame: this orange root's sweet, earthy flavor and year-round availability should elevate it well beyond its role as a staple base vegetable. (For what it's worth, the carrot is Britain's third favorite vegetable.)

stick with sticks Unless you're into watery, processed nubs, avoid so-called baby carrots. Get fresh and slender carrots when you can, as they tend to be the tastiest. If you buy larger, older carrots, peel them and cut out their musty, woody core. Got a bunch of carrots that have gone soft? Revive them in an ice bath before using them. 

what's up, doc? Carrots are rich in beta carotene, an orange pigment that gives the carrot its color. The body converts carotene to Vitamin A, a nutrient important for vision and bone growth. On the advice of the family doctor, Chip's father-in-law used to eat one carrot a day. After work. Reading the paper. With a martini.

roots Seventy years ago, Dorothea Lange spent time in and around Holtville, California, the "Carrot Capital of the World". Her photos from the area are worth looking at every now and then when you're feeling insufficiently thankful.

what you need

Do you Y peel or swivel?

Do you dump chopped vegetables right from the cutting board into the pan (and, like Chip, end up spilling them all over the stove)? Why not use a pastry scraper to transport them? Or you could use these cool melamine bowls to store the prepped veggies in until you're ready use them.

We're in prime carrot-planting season. If you've got a small patch of earth somewhere -- even a bare spot of the flower garden will do -- pick out some seeds and grow your own. If you're new to gardening, consult either Louise Rotte's Carrots Love Tomatoes or Sally Jean Cunningham's Great Gardening Companions.

Greatest carrot moment in the history of movies? In Gone with the Wind, when Scarlett rips a carrot from the earth and says, "...As God is my witness, I'll never be hungry again!"

what you do

Glazed carrots shine in contrast alongside a good steak. They shine as bright on their own. Even as dessert.

Let's say you've got only 20 minutes to prepare something filling for a vegetarian dropping by for an impromptu dinner: consider this citrus-thyme couscous with peas and carrots.

Same situation but it's a carnivore? Try this linguine with andouille, carrot and tarragon.  

Carrots add sweetness and texture to black bean burritos with cilantro.

With so many variations, carrot salad never gets old: a basic carrot-mint salad, a grated carrot and celeriac salad, a Thai carrot-cucumber salad.

Could you use a muffin?