Today on the blog we bring to you a festive, fun and flavorful holiday side dish – Honey & Thyme Roasted Carrots. We elevated this dish by adding another savory ingredient, La Vaquita Queso Fresco!
As y’all may already know we love all things Texas! Barbara and I were both born in Texas and our mom affectionately calls us her yellow roses of Texas. So of course we get excited when we’re introduced to new food brands made right here in the great state of Texas!
Cue, La Vaquita®! We can’t get enough of their cheeses and have been experimenting in the kitchen coming up with recipes using their delicious queso fresco, which translates into ‘fresh cheese’. Yum!
The La Vaquita story is a heartening one. Created in Houston in 1971 by a Mexican immigrant who was inspired by a recipe she learned on her family’s farm, and has since been handed down through generations of cheesemakers. Love this!
{Honey & Thyme Roasted Carrots Recipe}
Ingredients
- 1 bag of rainbow carrots, peeled
- 2 tsp butter, melted
- 2 tsp honey
- 1 tsp himalayan salt
- 1 tsp freshly cracked pepper
- 1/2 tsp fresh thyme
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/8 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 cup La Vaquita Queso Fresco, crumbled
- 1/4 cup pomegranate seeds
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or foil.
- In a small bowl melt butter in microwave (about 15 seconds).
- Add honey and season to the melted butter and mix together.
- Pour this mixture over carrots and toss to make sure evenly coated.
- Spread carrots out on baking sheet and roast for 20 minutes, flipping after 10 minutes.
- Transfer roasted carrots to a serving dish.
- Top with crumbled La Vaquita Queso Fresco and pomegranate seeds.
- Serve warm and enjoy!
We always like to take classic dishes to the next level by adding an interesting ingredient or trying a different type of cooking method. Using an ingredient like La Vaquita cheese is a fantastic addition to traditional holiday dishes and the best part is we get to create memorable cooking moments shared with our family and friends when serving these holiday dishes. With La Vaquita cheese you can instantly transform a dish into a flavorful, authentic, Mexican culinary experience. These wonderful artisanal Texas products can be found at H-E-B, Central Market (where we bought ours here in Dallas), Fiesta, Kroger and other local grocers throughout Texas.
{Other Fun Culinary Ideas with La Vaquita}
We also love using La Vaquita’s Crema Mexicana, which is cream that has a thinner consistency and slightly sweeter taste than sour cream. We use it to top off tostadas, tacos and salads – yum!!!
To learn more about La Vaquita’s products and history, visit www.lavaquitacheese.com
This post was sponsored by La Vaquita® and all opinions are our own.
Beautiful and tasty I’m sure! I love queso fresco, like I put it on everything! I’ll be picking up some rainbow carrots ASAP. I’ll let you know how it turns out!