Oven roasted baby carrots with fennel are flavored with a cilantro butter sauce. This is a very easy keto Thanksgiving side dish recipe. It’s ready in just 30 minutes and can be made ahead.
It’s been a minute since I last used fennel!
That is not a good thing because fennel is a very healthy vegetable.
Pairing them with carrots makes this dish a very good-for-you recipe.
Who says you can’t eat healthy at Thanksgiving?
Important tips
- ALWAYS use organic vegetables, if you can find them. Carrots and fennel can be easily found in the organic section of your grocery store. I know it’s expensive, but much cheaper in the long run.
- This recipe makes use of grass-fed butter. I use Kerrygold butter which is my favorite. You can always use vegan or non-grass-fed butter. Just don’t tell me that you did! Check out why I have a new found love for butter!
- You can make this recipe ahead of time. See below for how I made this ahead of time.
- If the baby carrots are too big, cut them into half. They will cook faster.
- Cut the fennel to about the same size as the baby carrots.
- The reason I roast them in 2 batches is because carrots take longer to cook then fennel.
- An (affiliate link) oven safe grill is not important. It’s just what I like to use because I love the grill marks. You can use a sheet pan or silicone baking trays too.
- Do not freeze the roasted carrots, if there are leftovers. They don’t thaw well. Instead, refrigerate them and use within a week.
Why is this keto-friendly?
Every ingredient in this recipe is considered keto and low-carb friendly. Yes, that includes carrots and it includes fennel.
Both veggies are right on the limit of carb/fiber ratio. A 3oz of baby carrots have about 4g of net carbs. 87g or 1 cup of fennel has about 4g of net carbs.
Personally, I think the many health benefits of both veggies far outweighs any bad parts of them.
Also, I always like to eat a rainbow of colors when I eat veggies. Their color contributes to a variety of healthy ingredients, so, I don’t fret about the carbs.
What does it taste like?
The combination the sweetness of carrots is such a perfect taste blend with the strong, pepperminty taste of fennel. Along with the garlic, butter and cilantro, this recipe is like a party in your mouth.
I love how this recipe came together using just the basic ingredients. It’s one of the few recipes that came out perfectly after the first time I tried it.
The flavors are like nothing you have tasted before.
Quick look at the ingredients
- 8oz organic carrots
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- ¼ tsp of pink salt for the roasting
- ⅛ tsp of pink salt for the butter sauce
- 3 cloves of garlic
- ½ of a fennel (medium sized)
- 2 Tbsp organic grass-fed butter
- ¼ cup of finely chopped cilantro
- ¼ tsp dill
- ½ tsp Italian seasoning
Below, get the full list and instructions on how to make these roasted baby carrots.
How to make ahead these roasted baby carrots
- Cut the carrots in half and cut the fennel to the same size
- Roast the carrots and fennel ahead of time (400°F Carrots for 20 minutes, 10 minutes for Fennel).
- Roast garlic along with the veggies for 15min. Roasting is optional, but the sauce tastes much better because of it.
- Mix up the remaining ingredients for the sauce along with the garlic.
- Refrigerate the roasted veggies separately from the sauce. Use glass containers for both. I make sure that the containers are oven safe.
- About 30 minutes before you are ready to serve them, preheat your oven to 250°F.
- Place the carrots and fennel on a baking sheet and put it in the oven. Heat for about 7 minutes.
- Turn off the oven and remove them from the oven and transfer to a serving bowl.
- You can reheat the sauce stove top or place the butter sauce container in the oven that is still warm. Do NOT microwave it.
Answering common questions
Never throw away tops of veggies. Those tops have just as much nutrition, if not more. Put them into:
– Soups like potato soup
– Pesto recipes
– Homemade veggie broths
– A marinade recipe
– Compost piles
– Teas or compound butter recipes
How will you use the fennel tops?
I like to wrap them in a tea towel and then refrigerate. Usually, I like to use it up in 5 days.
Yes, you can use any size of carrots. Cut the fennel in the same size. Also, you may need to adjust the amounts of the other ingredients.
If you have leftovers, refrigerate by storing them in a glass container. Use them up within 5 days.
– Parsley (Make your own chimichurri and use that instead)
– Fresh oregano
– Basil
– Mint
– Rosemary
Use these herbs by themselves or in combination. Let me know your favorite way of using them.
Sharing is caring
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Roasted Baby Carrots
Ingredients
For roasting the veggies
- 8 oz organic baby carrots about ½ a packet
- 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil divided into half
- ¼ tsp pink salt divided into half
- 3 cloves garlic
- ½ fennel bulb
For the sauce
- 2 Tbsp butter use organic, grass-fed butter
- ¼ cup cilantro finely chopped
- ¼ tsp dill
- ½ tsp Italian seasoning
- ⅛ tsp pink salt optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F
- Cut the carrots into halves (diagonally)8 oz organic baby carrots
- Place the carrots in the glass bowl, add 1 Tbsp oil + ⅛ tsp salt2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, ¼ tsp pink salt
- Mix well and then, place on a baking tray of choice
- Put the garlic cloves in the same bowl and coat them with the oil3 cloves garlic
- Put the garlic in the same baking tray and place in the oven
- While the carrots are roasting, cut the fennel to the same size as the carrots.½ fennel bulb
- Roast the carrots and garlic for 15 minutes
- Remove the tray, place the garlic in a separate plate
- Add the fennel to the baking tray, keep the carrots in it
- Put the baking tray back in the oven and bake for another 10 minutes
- While that is baking in the oven, crush the garlic
- Mix the ingredients for the sauce along with the crushed garlic
- Remove the veggies and mix them.
- Place the veggies in a serving bowl and drizzle the butter sauce on it
- Mix well and serve
Video
Notes
- ALWAYS use organic vegetables, if you can find them. Carrots and fennel can be easily found in the organic section of your grocery store. I know it’s expensive, but much cheaper in the long run.
- This recipe makes use of grass-fed butter. I use Kerrygold butter which is my favorite. You can always use vegan or non-grass-fed butter. Just don’t tell me that you did!
- You can make this recipe ahead of time. See below for how I made this ahead of time.
- If the baby carrots are too big, cut them into half. They will cook faster.
- Cut the fennel to about the same size as the baby carrots.
- The reason I roast them in 2 batches is because carrots take longer to cook then fennel.
- An oven safe grill is not important. It’s just what I like to use because I love the grill marks. You can use a sheet pan or silicone baking trays too.
- Do not freeze the roasted carrots, if there are leftovers. They don’t thaw well. Instead, refrigerate them and use within a week.
sabjeewala says
Thank you for such a amazing article
LaKita says
These roasted baby carrots are a simple and delicious recipe that is a great side dish for any meal.
Rini says
Thank you, Lakita
Veronika says
I never thought to try mixing carrots and fennel but they work together really well! Especially with the cilantro dill sauce. So delicious!
Rini says
Thank you, Veronika.
Jacqueline says
I love roasting carrots but never thought to pair them with fennel, which we use quite a lot actually. A delicious combo which I’m going to serve as a side at Christmas. BTW you mention baby potatoes earlier in the post (important tips) but I think that’s a typo?
Rini says
Thank you, Jacqueline. Thanks for letting me know about the typo! I always have baby potatoes on my mind, lol. I fixed it to say baby carrot.
Leslie says
I always buy organic carrots as well. Thanks for the tip on using Kerrygold butter. I’ve never tried it so I appreciate the tip. 🙂
Rini says
Thank you, Leslie. That’s what real butter tastes like, lol. Kerrygold reminded me of the butter I used to eat as a kid.
Amy Liu Dong says
This is an easy, tasty, and healthy dish to make for tonight’s dinner.
Yum!
Rini says
Thank you, Amy
Marie says
I love fennel! I thought the combination with carrots was great and it creates a beautifully colorful dish. I can’t wait to serve this over the holidays!
Rini says
Thank you, Marie.
Linda says
I almost forgot how delicious fennel can be! The combination of the carrots, fennel, and, of course, garlic was the perfect pairing and I loved that touch of cilantro for extra flavor.
Rini says
Thank you, Linda
Colleen says
The fennel and the cilantro butter sauce really elevated these simple roasted carrots. We really liked this recipe!
Rini says
Thank you, Colleen
Amanda says
These carrots are amazing! The recipe was so simple to follow, and that cilantro butter sauce really gave it a little something extra. I’ll have to make these again for Thanksgiving.
Rini says
Thank you, Amanda. So happy you liked it.
Jessica says
The cilantro butter sauce makes these incredible! I’m going to use this sauce on other vegetables too now, thank you!
Rini says
Thank you, Jessica