Wednesday August 15, 2012

Heirloom Breeds & Seeds:
Year of the Dragon Carrots by Annie Reichert

Dragon Carrots are strong and sweet with a hint of hay on the inside complemented by a bitter, earth-fresh exterior. Standard carrots have been bred to be bright orange; you are likely connecting with an ancient line of carrots when you bite into white, yellow, purple, and red carrots. As all things you’ve just pulled up yourself, dragon carrots are delicious in the field, and crunch loudly enough to make your fellow gardener’s head turn. To emphasize their contrasting colors and simple summer crispness, enjoy these carrots in a shredded salad with olive oil, lemon, parsley, and salt. Alternately, to braise them in a little water and butter with a splash of orange flower water would bring out the wonderful sweet heart within the crimson dragon skin.

These were grown from organic seed at High Mowing Seeds in Wolcott, VT.