Culinary Guides

This is a hearty loaf for a slow morning, sweetened with honey and chopped dates and tied together with cinnamon and nutmeg. The star is freshly grated carrot, and if you can get farm-fresh carrots that have been through a frost, all the better. We like it toasted in thick slices with an embarrassing amount of butter, but it is just as good straight up.

Ingredients

• 2 eggs
• 2/3 cup walnut oil (or another neutral oil)
• 3/4 cup honey
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon grated nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 1/2 cups freshly grated carrot
• 1 cup dates, roughly chopped
• 1/4 cup walnuts, chopped
• Sprinkle of old-fashioned oats (optional)

Directions

1. Heat the oven to 350F (175C) and grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan with oil or butter.
2. In a medium to large bowl, beat the eggs until light and frothy. Gradually beat in the walnut oil, then the honey and vanilla, until well combined.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt so the spices and baking soda are evenly distributed.
4. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet, beating until smooth and lump-free. Fold in the grated carrot and chopped dates until evenly distributed.
5. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread it evenly. Sprinkle the top with chopped walnuts and a little oats if you like.
6. Bake 55 to 60 minutes, until a knife or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
7. Let the loaf cool in the pan about 10 minutes, then turn it out onto a rack to cool completely. Slice thick and serve toasted with butter, or plain.

Grower's tip: Carrots that have been through a frost bake up noticeably sweeter, because cold weather turns their starch to sugar. If you grow your own, leave a few in the ground past the first frosts, then pull and grate them fresh for the sweetest loaf.

The loaf keeps in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days, refrigerated for a week, or frozen in slices for longer. Thaw and toast before serving. Raisins, shredded coconut, or a cream cheese frosting are all easy additions.

Fresh, sweet carrots make all the difference here, and they are one of the simplest crops to grow. Sow a bed in loose soil, thin the seedlings so the roots size up, and grate them straight from the garden into your next loaf.