For years my husband has picked through stir fries leaving a pile of carrots neatly on the side of his plate, which I eventually end up nabbing with my chopsticks to avoid any waste (okay, I love carrots, so I really don't mind). But, when I made the outright statement that he doesn't like carrots, he eminently denied it. He claimed that most carrots just weren't good quality. The ones that we have had in some finer restaurants are much sweeter ... those, he likes.

Perplexed as to what the difference could be (after I had trialed organic, conventional, AND local carrots) I went online and discovered a little secret. Don't ask me where I found it, as I merely committed the idea to memory, but it seems many chefs will sweeten the pot a bit with just a wee bit of sugar to bring out the natural sweetness in carrots without going overboard and creating a glaze. So with this new-to-me concept and a 5-spice craving, I cranked on the oven, and threw together an easy yet flavorful side dish of Sweet Roasted Five-Spice Carrots. Though my husband wasn't elated at first to see a big pile of carrots on his plate, he gladly devoured every last morsel! View the recipe on my personal blog, One Frugal Foodie.