Honey Maple Roasted Carrots

By Chris Scheuer | Updated on January 13, 2022

5 from 21 votes

These are like candy; everyone always wants second helpings! This recipe definitely transforms everyday lowly carrot into something spectacular!

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Transform the everyday humble carrot into a spectacular side with this easy, make-ahead Honey Maple Roasted Carrots recipe!

No matter what you serve these delicious Honey Maple Roasted Carrots with, I promise they will be a major hit! You'll understand what I mean when you read just a few of the many emails I've received regarding this recipe:

closeup of a cast iron pan filled with Honey Maple Roasted Carrots topped with shiny pomegranate arils and thyme

Chris, I took these to a potluck a few weeks ago. What a hit they were! One fellow (75 years old) said he never liked carrots before this. I was surprised he even tried them, but he said if he had carrots like this before he would have eaten them all the time. That's a lot of years to not like carrots only to suddenly change your mind. I would say to be sure to make enough. They seem to disappear *very* quickly!

I've had and made glazed carrots before, but none even close to as good as this recipe!

Just made these to reheat for Thanksgiving tomorrow. They are so good that I cooked a second bag.

I would like to thank you for this recipe. I've made it a part of my Thanksgiving menu for the past two years (and about to be three). The pomegranate arils really just add something unique and are very pretty on the plate and the table. This year I just might have to make a double batch!

I made these last year, and they were a hit with EVERYONE. Not one carrot slice was leftover. I made them the night before and heated them in the oven right before our meal. They tasted so good, and I think the second time heating them up really helped to caramelize them. You have to make them!!!

And on and on it goes...

overhead view of a cast iron pan filled with Honey Maple Roasted Carrots on a wood table with a spoon ready to serve

Make-ahead side dish

These Honey Maple Roasted Carrots are an easy veggie dish that can be thrown together hours, or even a day in advance. Pop them in a hot oven about 20-30 minutes before dinner. This recipe is always a beautiful crowd pleaser, so make sure to prepare plenty. Like a delicious bowl of candy, you'll find the carrot platter empty at the end of the meal!

extreme closeup of a cast iron pan filled with Honey Maple Roasted Carrots topped with shiny pomegranate arils

Everyday carrots, transformed into a sweet, sticky, scrumptious side (healthy too!)

What's the process? Easy! The carrots are sliced diagonally, giving them lots of surfaces to caramelize, and tossed with olive oil, maple syrup, honey, coriander, sea salt and fresh pepper. Then just spread them out on a sheet pan (you can do all of this ahead of time) and pop the little guys in a piping hot oven.

25 minutes later they're glistening and so beautifully caramelized, it's almost impossible to resist sneaking one or two before they hit the serving bowl. Add a beautiful garnish of sesame seeds, pomegranate arils and sprinkle of chopped, fresh herbs just before serving. This simple dish will be sure to bring oohs and aahs when you proudly present it at the dinner table.

Sound too good and too easy to be true? Check out our video and you'll be a believer!

See what I mean? So easy, so... good!

Ultra closeup of a cast iron pan filled with Honey Maple Roasted Carrots

Although these Honey Maple Roasted Carrots are pretty enough for a holiday celebration, they're so simple to put together that they're also great for weeknight dinners.

Just peel and slice the carrots early in the day and they'll be ready to be served for dinner with minimal effort. Oh, and like I said before, make plenty. Two pounds sounds like a lot of carrots but, I promise, they'll be gone in a flash!

Intimidated by pomegranates?

If you're a bit intimidated by pomegranates, I got you covered. Here's a tutorial on The Easy Way to Remove Pomegranate Seeds. I've gotten tons of emails from people who have tried this easy technique and couldn't believe how well it works. Here's just one of the many:

I can't believe that I was scared of pomegranates all these years also. I'm a 57 year old building inspector who just learned something amazingly simple that will enrich his family's life with the gift of seasonal pomegranates. I'm not one to respond to this type of stuff, especially a cooking blog, but I just had to. Thanks again!

So many of our readers are now pomegranate aficionados! You can be too, but if you're just not a pomegranate fan, these carrots are still quite scrumptious without them.

Extreme closeup of a cast iron baking pan filled with Honey Maple Roasted Carrots

Café Tips for making these Honey Maple Roasted Carrots

Feel free to change up the garnish. The recipe calls for thyme and chives. You could use just one of those or substitute chopped fresh rosemary or oregano.
For best results in this recipe, look for medium-size carrots with a deep orange coloring. Bypass really thin or tiny carrots as they will cook too fast and won't have time to nicely caramelize. Also, pass up very large carrots. Although they're sweet, they tend to have woody cores.
Prep the carrots early in the day or even a day in advance. That will make things easy peasy right before dinner when there are so many other things to attend to.
Coriander, along with salt and pepper is used as a seasoning in this Honey Maple Roasted Carrots recipe. Coriander is the seed of the cilantro plant. Even if you don't care for cilantro, don't skip the coriander! It tastes nothing like the plant. Coriander seed has a bright citrusy flavor and pairs perfectly with the sweet carrots. The recipe calls for ground coriander but if you have the whole coriander seeds, just crush them with a mortar and pestle. The aroma of freshly crushed coriander seed is amazing and it's more flavorful than ground coriander. No mortar and pestle? No worries, just put the seeds a ziplock bag and use a heavy sauté pan to crush them.
Best way to peel carrots? I love this Oxo veggie peeler. It's inexpensive, has a good feel in my hand, has two swiveling blades for easy peel and, it never seems to wear out!

Oh, and if you're looking for delicious sides that aren't the same-old, same-old, I've got another fabulous idea for you. You can use your new-found pomegranate skills with this one too! Our Honey Ginger Charred Carrots recipe, it's another winner!

Overhead view of a serving bowl of Honey Ginger Charred Carrots topped with mint sprigs on a blue and white patterned cloth and a wood table

This Honey Maple Roasted Carrot Recipe was originally published back in 2017. We thought it was way too good to get buried in the deep Café archives of over 1200 recipes, so we spiffed up the post and pictures and added a video to show just how easy it is. Bon Appétit!

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