Honey Roasted Carrots with Crispy Quinoa Sage Pesto.

Perfectly roasted carrots with a drizzle of honey to bring out their natural sweetness. Each carrot becomes golden, caramelized, and just a little sticky around the edges. Topped with homemade sage pesto and butter toasted crispy quinoa for a delicious crunch. A simple side dish, but full of flavor and so pretty for the holiday table, too!

I don’t often share simple side dish recipes like roasted carrots. Usually, I prefer sharing something more like a complete dinner. Except, of course, this time of year!

For this year’s Thanksgiving menu, I didn’t want to share just another salad. I wanted to include some of the other side dishes I love making, too.

Roasted carrots are a personal favorite. I eat them all the time, especially during the fall and winter months. Most days, I keep the seasonings pretty simple.

But for Thanksgiving, I love to roast them with a little honey. And this year, I’m making them extra special with a fresh sage pesto and buttery, crispy quinoa.

I actually have crispy quinoa in a salad I’m sharing in my upcoming cookbook. It’s become one of my favorite toppings! Think of it like crispy breadcrumbs, only better. It’s buttery, a little salty, and adds the best crunch to just about everything.

The carrots themselves don’t need much. Just olive oil, salt, pepper, and a drizzle of honey to bring out their natural sweetness and help caramelize the edges.

The sage pesto adds so much fresh, herby flavor, while the crispy quinoa makes every bite a little more delicious. Finish with a sprinkle of pomegranate seeds for the prettiest pop of color!

It’s simple, colorful, and feels just a little special. Such a pretty side dish for Thanksgiving or Christmas entertaining!

Here are the details

Ingredients

Roasted Carrots

• carrots 
• olive oil
• honey
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• pomegranate arils

Crispy Quinoa

• cooked quinoa
• salted butter

Sage Pesto

• parsley
• sage
• pepitas
• parmesan
• olive oil
• chili flakes

The Steps

Step 1: Roast the carrots

Toss the carrots with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Roast at 450°F until they begin to caramelize around the edges, about 20 minutes. Drizzle with honey, then roast for another 5–10 minutes until golden and lightly sticky. Adding the honey toward the end keeps it from burning and gives the carrots those delicious caramelized edges.

Step 2: Make the sage pesto

In a food processor, combine the parsley, fresh sage, toasted pepitas, Parmesan, olive oil, salt, and chili flakes. Pulse until finely chopped. I like to leave the pesto a little textured rather than completely smooth.

Step 3: Make the crispy quinoa

Melt the butter in a skillet, then add the cooked quinoa. Cook until golden and crispy, about 10–15 minutes. The trick is not to stir constantly! Let the quinoa sit for a few minutes between stirring so it has time to get nice and crispy.

Think buttery, toasted breadcrumbs, only better. SO GOOD!

Step 4: Serve

Arrange the warm roasted carrots on a serving platter, spoon the sage pesto over the top, and finish with the crispy quinoa and a sprinkle of pomegranate seeds.

The colors are so pretty together! And I love that you can prep almost everything ahead of time for Thanksgiving. It’s simple, but feels special and is so delicious!