Roasted Carrot and Peanut Pate

I have a long history of combining peanuts and carrots. In the days when I was making sandwiches on a daily basis for school lunches, peanut butter toppped with coarsely shredded raw carrots was a lunchbox favourite. There was also a carrot cake I used to bake that was topped with sweet lemon cream cheese and crushed peanuts, and a salad of shredded carrot, roasted peanuts, crisp fried breadcrumbs and parsley. In December my interest was piqued when a fellow food blogger Frugal Feeding posted a dip recipe which listed among it ingredients roasted carrots and peanut butter. His recipe looked delicious, but I can’t help myself, having stolen the roasted carrots idea from him, I simply tasted and tweeked until my dip satisfied my palate. The texture ended up more pate than dip.

A pre Christmas drinks party for a crowd was the perfect opportunity for a tryout. It was just right spread on my home made pita crisps.. and by far the most popular snack on the day.

500g carrots

1 tablespoon grapeseed oil

2 cloves garlic

1 cup salted roasted peanuts

2 tablespoons peanut oil

Juice of 1 large lemon

Juice of 1 lime

1 1/2 teaspoons sambal oelek

1 teaspoon salt

Good grinding of black pepper

2 spring onions, finely sliced

Preheat the oven to 180C. Wash and dry the carrots, chop them into chunks then toss them in the grapeseed oil. Put the carrots onto an ovenproof tray and roast them until cooked and lightly caramelized, about 45 minutes.

Peel the garlic and put into the jug of your food processor. Pulse the garlic until well chopped.

Add half the peanuts then process them until finely chopped.

Add the carrots, peanut oil, lemon and lime juice. Blitz the dip into a fine but thick purée. Add the remainder of the peanuts and the chilli sambal, pulse to roughly chop the nuts, then add salt and pepper to taste. Stir in the spring onions by hand.

About ladyredspecs

I live in sunny Brisbane, Australia. My love of good food drives me as a cook, a reader, a traveller, an artist and but mostly as an eater. I cooked professionally for many years but have no formal training. Simply guided by a love of eating good food, respect for ingredients and an abhorrence of artificial additives, I cook instinctively applying the technical know how acquired by experience. I hope you enjoy what I share Sandra AKA ladyredspecs

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