Celebrating International Carrot Day

International Carrot Day

International carrot day occurs on 4th April every year, and is the pinnacle for carrot lovers all around the world. It is the day when the carrot is celebrated through carrot parties and other carrot related festivities.

Across the globe, over 35 million tons of carrots are produced each year. Carrots naturally come in many colours, flavours, and textures and contain different nutrients. White carrots are crispy, red carrots are starchy, purple carrots are spicy, etc. So how come carrots always seem to be orange and taste the same? One word – Netherlands. During the 17th century, the Dutch tore away from the Spanish politics of the time thanks to the Dutch royal family, the House of Orange-Nassau. To honour the royal family, they turned everything orange – houses, clothes, jam, candles, liqueurs, and, of course, carrots. Thanks to international trade, they spread orange carrots to the rest of the world until society barely recognised any other type.

Carrot Day was founded in 2003 to raise awareness of carrots and their health benefits around the world. The day is becoming increasingly popular, with celebrations reported in France, Italy, Sweden, Russia, Australia, the United Kingdom, and Japan on April 4th.



Health benefits of carrots 

Carrots are known for their bright orange colour (though they do come in other colours), beautiful green leaves, and crunchy texture. These delicious vegetables also contain several nutrients that benefit our mouths and bodies. The greatest benefits of carrots include:

  • Improving eye health with beta-carotene reduces the risk of age-related diseases.

  • Beta-carotene, which helps produce vitamin A, also improves the body’s immune system.

  • Carrots contain carotenoids, such as retinol, biotin, and lycopene, which promote healthy, youthful skin.

  • All crunchy vegetables help clean the teeth naturally. In the process, the gums are also massaged.

  • The keratin and vitamin A in carrots strengthens dental enamel.

  • Fibre, beta-carotene, and vitamin A are important parts of an anti-inflammatory diet. This is good news for patients who suffer from gum disease (an inflammatory disease). Eat more carrots to stop the development of gum disease or fight it off.

  • Experts say that yellow, red, and orange vegetables improve heart health; so, eat plenty of them!

 

How to celebrate

The easiest and tastiest way to celebrate International Carrot Day is to make sure that carrots are featured in every meal! Start the day with a couple of carrot-apple breakfast muffins. Then take along a bag of baby carrots with a bit of ranch dressing for a snack throughout the day.

While the familiar carrot that we all know and love is orange this is actually the newest variety of carrot. Carrots, while originally white, are still available in a variety of colours including purple, red, white, yellow, or black. You may want to take the celebration up a level. Do so by wearing the colours of carrots - you could even throw a carrot-themed party! 


Luxury Carrot Cake Recipe

Paul Hollywood’s carrot cake recipe uses pecan nuts for crunch and flavour, with a lovely warmth coming through in the cinnamon and ginger spices. It’s topped with cream cheese frosting, and decorated with a crown of orange zest.

This carrot cake recipe is perfect: just the right amount of spice, with a super moist and tight velvety crumb and the smoothest whipped frosting. Soft and lush with just the right amount of warming cinnamon spice and a zing from freshly grated ginger. This carrot cake is dense, tender, and fluffy in all the right ways.

The only ingredients you will need are:

  • 155ml sunflower oil, plus extra for greasing

  • 230g self-raising flour

  • 1 tsp baking powder

  • 1½ tsp ground cinnamon

  • ½ tsp mixed spice

  • ½ tsp ground ginger

  • 230g light brown muscovado sugar

  • Finely grated zest of 1 satsuma or mandarin, plus strips to decorate

  • 100g pecans, halved

  • 260g carrots, coarsely grated

  • 3 medium free-range eggs, beaten

For the icing

  • 50g butter, softened

  • 200g full-fat cream cheese, we recommend Philadelphia

  • 100g icing sugar, plus extra to dust

  • Finely grated zest of 1 orange

For the orange peel

  • 2 oranges

  • 200ml water

  • 200g caster sugar

Learn More:

If you want to learn more about carrots, you can visit the Online Carrots Museum. It’s packed full of recipes, information and the history of this fascinating vegetable.



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Debbie Gray