REMEMBER THESE CARROTS?

Remember these?? Thats right folks, these are carrots! Over the past 10+ years, I have been lured away from this luscious vegetable by it's evil, tasteless step sister, the BABY CARROT

Why did I make this change? Well, for one, I can't resist the convenience of not having to take out a peeler or knife to eat a carrot. In fact, now that I think about it, that is the ONLY reason I switch, convenience! Convenience comes in many forms when it comes to the baby carrot: some are pre-packaged in little packets, easy to grab and go, and good for lunch boxes. Another plus is that when I host a party, I can open the bag and dump them into my plates and bowls without having to wash, peel, cut. I mean, who has time to do that, right?

As a kid, carrots were one of my favorite snacks (that is until the late 70's / early 80's when processed foods took over my house like the people storming the Bastille). I enjoyed peeling them with our rusty metal peeler, the one you had to press with your thumb in the middle to get some leverage.....sometimes I salted the carrots, sometimes I cut them into sticks, other times I ate them whole. Occasionally, I would chop them the short way and indulge in eating little carrot circles. Whatever the form, I loved carrots.

(although, for the record, don't really love the shredded carrot, what a waste)

As a parent, I thought carrots would be a staple of my kids' diets, but truth be told, they eat them occasionally and not with the passion I once did. Still, a minimum of two times per week, I put those nasty little baby carrots on their plates and insist they eat at least three. I go thru periods where the effort (you know, popping open the bag and placing them on the plate) and whining is not worth it and baby carrots exit my house for a month at a time. I personally do not eat carrots anymore because they are high in sugar, and I try not to eat more than 4 grams of sugar with each meal or snack.

Two summers ago, I was at a farmer's market in Vermont, and one of the stands had beautiful heirloom carrots. The bunches were different colors, purple, yellow, orange, a true feast for the eyes. The image looks something like this:

The colors were so alluring, as was the whole LOCALLY GROWN aspect, that I purchased a bunch. Some of the purple carrots are orange inside, taste a little spicy and not as sweet as the orange carrots, they can contain less sugar, a good option for me. I tried these on my kids, but alas, they were not interested. I, however, thought they were delicious and can't find them in my local markets......SHOCKER!

Anyway, the saga of the carrot has continued, until this past Monday, when my friend Tasha gave me a brilliant piece of advice. I was lamenting that my kids will rarely eat vegetables, when she suggested I feed them their vegetables first, prior to dinner, when they are at their hungriest! That same day, I took my youngest son to the market and had him help me choose the produce and he wanted to buy REAL CARROTS! So, I indulged him and bought a bunch, which contained 8 carrots. The whole way home, he was literally CRYING and SCREAMING for a carrot! This was music to my ears. The second I finished unpacking the groceries, I peeled and washed, but didn't cut, a carrot for him. I must say here that my OXO PEELER is far superior to the rusty metal one I had as a kid, and takes no effort to use. He devoured it in seconds and asked for another. His older brothers started to see his joy in his REAL CARROT, and asked for one. Before I served dinner, all three of my boys had eaten TWO CARROTS EACH........a true achievement

Because my bunch contained 8 carrots, I only had two to serve the next day. I knew this would be a fight, so I cut them into sticks and they were equally well received. I will not poo-poo the baby carrot when I see them at my friend's houses, and hey, they still might get served here for social events, but getting re-acquainted with the REAL CARROT has been a true joy and wonder in my house, which is actually quite ridiculous if you think about it. I will keep a good supply of yummy carrots stocked in my house at all times, and start to plot what other veggies I can get into these children!

One final note, carrots and baby carrots have virtually the same nutritional value. I was shocked to learn this as the baby carrot is so tasteless and yucky compared to the REAL CARROT.....who knew?