Honey Roasted Carrots and Parsnips

Name: Honey Roasted Carrots and Parsnips
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 40 min
Ingredients: 1 lb carrots (thinly sliced); 1 lb parsnips (thinly sliced); 2 tbsp olive oil; 1/2 tsp salt; 2 tbsp butter; 2 tbsp honey; 1/2 tsp fresh minced rosemary

An easy side dish that comes together in under 40 minutes, this honey roasted carrots and parsnips recipe is the perfect side dish for chicken, beef or pork. Flavored with a glaze made with honey, butter and fresh rosemary.

Closeup of roasted carrots and parsnips in a white bowl with rosemary.

I firmly believe that parsnips are a completely underrated root vegetable. They are like the sweeter and earthier cousin of the carrot. Usually, they find their way into soups, but I felt like they needed a moment of their own.

Why this recipe works

The key when cooking with honey is to avoid anything burning, so these vegetables get roasted in a hot, 400F oven with some olive oil and salt until they get nice and caramelized. Then they are tossed in a honey glaze.

If you add the honey glaze during the cooking process, you’ll end up with a sticky, burnt mess–trust me, I made that mistake when developing this recipe.

Ingredients for the recipe on a butcher block.

Ingredients you’ll need

For the parsnips, try and find young, small parsnips that you won’t need to peel.
In this recipe, I’m using carrots that are tri-colored because they look nice on the table, but you can absolutely use regular, orange carrots.
Olive oil and salt for roasting.
For the glaze you’ll need honey, butter and fresh rosemary. It makes an aromatic sweet and savory glaze that pairs perfectly with the roasted root vegetables.

Expert tips

Try and cut all the vegetables into the same size so that they cook evenly. I like to thinly slice into long sticks.
Don’t crowd the pan! You’ll end up with steamed veggies instead of caramelized and delicious ones. Try and spread them out evenly on the pan–they will shrink as they roast.
The vegetables should be nice and caramelized when you take them out of the oven, but if you want more colour, you can always toss them under the broiler once you’ve added the glaze–just watch closely, the honey will burn quickly.

Step-by-step instructions

Preheat oven to 400F. Toss carrots and parsnips on a baking sheet, with olive oil and salt. Roast for 30 minutes.
Just before they are done roasting, in a small pot over medium-low heat melt butter with honey and rosemary. We’re not looking to brown the butter, so remove it from the heat once it has melted.
Pour honey butter over roasted vegetables, sprinkle with extra rosemary and serve.

Do parsnips need parboiling before roasting?

No. Similar to carrots, you can roast parsnips without boiling them first.

Do you peel a parsnip before roasting?

No. I like to use young parsnips which don’t have thick outer skin. I simply scrub them well before roasting.

How long do you roast carrots and parsnips?

I roast them for 30 minutes at 400F.

Roasted carrots and parsnips in a white bowl with fresh rosemary sprinkled on top.

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