Candied Carrots and Beets in Red Currant Sauce

As I've said, I'm a sucker for a bargain. What I haven't said is that I'm a sucker for unique berries. I've always been a fan of huckleberries and boysenberries since I picked them from the bushes at my grandmother's house. I saw these small, ruby red berries on special and saw that they were red currants. I immediately thought of black currants and threw them in my cart.

When I got home I tasted them and was unprepared for the tart flavor. It wasn't as bad as a raw cranberry, but still sour. I also had these beautiful beets and carrots waiting to be used, and thought it might be a good alternative to the sour flavor of lemon in a more sweet dish. Thus, this was born.

Ingredients:

2 large beets, about the size of a softball each
6 small carrots or 4 medium ones, chopped into bite sized pieces
1/3c sugar
1 tsp ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
1 box red currants, about 6 oz

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cut the tops off the beets and slice them into quarters. Allow to boil for about 20 minutes, then add the carrots to the boiling water. Boil for 15-20 minutes longer. Drain and allow to cool. Running under cold water, pull the skin off the beets. Slice them into bite sized pieces as well.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Pull the currants off of their stems and rinse well. Combine with the sugar, ginger and cinnamon in a small saucepan over medium heat until it becomes syrupy, toss with the beets and carrots in a casserole dish. Bake for around 20 minutes or until it bubbles. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Serve with chilled sour cream.