Roasted Carrots Are The Secret To Giada De Laurentiis' Vibrant Hummus

Emmy-winning celebrity chef Giada De Laurentiis has a seemingly endless list of achievements, and to share her breadth of culinary knowledge, she launched Giadzy, an online platform featuring hundreds of free recipes, hosting and traveling tips, and kitchen products. Among the recipes she shares on the site is a novel and delicious take on traditional hummus, using roasted carrots as both a flavoring and coloring agent. Carrot sticks and hummus are already a popular pairing for a snack or appetizer platter; a raw carrot's subtle sweetness and crunch complements the flavor and creamy texture of hummus. Roasting carrots caramelizes and softens them, transforming their flavor profile to sweet and earthy and their texture to rich and starchy.

Adding roasted carrots to hummus will add those sweet, earthy notes to savory chickpeas, tangy lemon juice, and smoky spices like paprika and cayenne. Plus, it will turn the final dip a bright orange, making for a beautiful presentation. Roasted carrot hummus is a flavorful and vibrant variation that is elegant and easy to make with ingredients that are budget-friendly and available year-round.

Not only does De Laurentiis add roasted carrots to hummus, she also roasts the carrots with whole garlic cloves. She uses roasted garlic instead of fresh to provide yet another layer of caramelized sweetness to the spread. To roast the carrots and garlic, cut carrots into 1-inch pieces and peel the garlic cloves before coating them in olive oil. Season them with salt and place them on a baking sheet, then cover them with aluminum foil and roast at 425 degrees Farenheit for 15 minutes.

Cutting the carrots into pieces makes them the same size as the garlic cloves, ensuring both roast at the same rate. The tin foil traps heat and vapors to keep the carrots and garlic moist and tender. Once the carrots and garlic have cooled, you simply add them to a food processor with garbanzos, olive oil, and lemon juice, blending until  creamy. If the hummus is too thick, add water a spoonful at a time.

You can customize this recipe by choosing different spices like paprika and cumin or adding the traditional tahini for more nuttiness. This roasted carrot hummus would make a beautiful addition to a mezze platter with labneh and baba ghanoush. You could also create a rainbow platter with a few hummus variations, pairing the orange carrot hummus with a roasted red pepper, a pink beet, and a green pea hummus to serve with colorful veggie chips and crudites.