bbq carrots with homemade ranch

from power vegetables (recipe below)

bbq and ranch are so delicious together, especially when you have a good homemade version. j made this for me on a day i was working, and it was the best. the flavors were 10/10, he is not a ranch lover and he liked this ranch a lot. i would say, if i were to redo the recipe, i would just roast the carrots in the oven, then glaze with bbq sauce and roast a little longer. that way, the texture would be more cooked through and the sweetness of the carrots would concentrate even more.

MAKES 4 SERVINGS

2 lb medium carrots

2 T extra-virgin olive oil

+ kosher salt and freshly ground black

pepper

1⁄2 C archetypal supermarket barbecue sauce (sweet baby ray’s is the way)

+ Ranch Dressing (recipe follows)

1. Heat a charcoal or gas grill to medium or the broiler to high.

2. Wash and trim the carrots, then halve them lengthwise. Toss the carrots with the olive oil, salt and pepper to taste, and half of the barbecue sauce-add more if needed; they should be glazed in it. Grill or broil the carrots, turning and basting with more sauce, until they are nicely charred but not burned, 5 or 6 minutes. Move to a cooler spot on the grill or turn the oven down to 350°F, and continue cooking the carrots until tender but not mushy (you can test them with a thin knife or a fork; they should yield but not mush), about 10 minutes in total.

3. Serve the carrots with the ranch drizzled all over the place or chastely segregated in its own bowl.

RANCH DRESSING

MAKES ABOUT 1⁄2 CUP

11⁄2 T dried parsley

1⁄2 t dried dill

1⁄2 t garlic powder

1⁄2 t onion powder

4 t dried chives

4 t kosher salt

4t freshly ground black pepper 1st cayenne pepper

4C mayonnaise

4 C buttermilk, plus more if desired

1. Combine the dried herbs and spices in a spice or coffee grinder and blitz them into a green powder. (Don't have the power tools? Don't worry. Just stir 'em together.)

2. In a bowl, stir together the mayonnaise. buttermilk, and green herb/spice powder. Thin with additional buttermilk as you see fit. This will keep for days in the refrigerator, good in all the places that ranch usually is.