"carrots and tomatoes"
a bunch of small carrots
two tomatoes
six or eight cloves of garlic, unpeeled, crushed
splash of olive oil
salt
black pepper
pinch of sugar (if necessary)
To make "carrots and tomatoes," use a bunch of small orange or varicolored carrots such as the ones you'd pick up at a farmers market. They should be organic or at least chemical-free. If they aren't, then peel them. Otherwise, just lop the greens off and scrub the carrots free of grit under running water. If there are any carrots fat as a thumb, slice in half.
Put carrots in a baking dish with plenty of room and eight unpeeled, lightly crushed cloves of garlic. Toss carrots in a splash of olive oil, just enough to slick the pan and the carrots. Cook in an oven at 375 until they appear cooked on the outside but are still a little resistant to your knife or an exploratory tooth.
Slice your two ripe tomatoes into eighths (or sixteenths if they're still a little underripe). Place the tomatoes on top of the carrots, add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste, add a pinch of sugar if the tomatoes are slightly underripe and return to the oven. There is no need to add any oil for the tomatoes, just sprinkle the seasonings on top. Cook until the tomatoes brown nicely and fall apart.
Take out of the oven and toss the carrots and the tomatoes together. There should be plenty of oil in the pan to make everything cook nicely. Resist the urge to add more. Return to the oven until the carrots are perfectly tender. Discard the garlic, which will be black and hellish tasting from leeching away any bitterness from the tomatoes. Plate and serve, or not, as this tastes great anywhere from hot to room temperature.
*SAUCY*
If you're feeling saucy, add a quartered lemon and some washed, drained salt-cured capers to substitute for the salt. ONLY use salt-packed capers, because the other kind are totally weak. But make sure you wash them and pat them dry, or you will have no fun at all.
