I thought it would be fun recreating the carrot cake oatmeal.
And speaking of carrots, have I shared with you all that one of my family members “created” the baby carrot? Yes, the ones we all eat today. Sit down and relax and I’m going to take you all on a little carrot journey.
A family member (cousin), and my father’s best friend, Mike Yurosek, referred affectionately in some circles as “The Father of Baby Carrots” created/invented baby carrots as we know and love them today.
The Bunny-Luv label was his business, and was acquired by Grimmway Farms around 1995. Back in the 60’s, Mike was frustrated with the waste factor of the knobby, twisted and broken carrots that would come in for processing. They were not sellable and were often more than half of the carrots that came into the plant.
His idea to take the carrots that were normally waste and use an industrial potato peeler to cut them down (along with some other processing equipment) was the beginning of the baby carrots we know today. There is so much more to this great story, but the baby carrot lives on through Grimmway Farms. I was so happy to see the Yurosek’s family legacy carried on by another wonderful family-owned company like Grimmway.
At one of the farms we visited, it just so happened one of the old Bunny-Luv trailers (remember seeing these on the roads) was parked on site. I was thrilled to see it and it brought back so many memories of my childhood.
Do you see the logo, it was drawn by Mike’s wife after Warner Bros. was unhappy with the Bug’s Bunny-ish logo Bunny-Luv was previously using. Instead of heading to court to fight it out, Mike’s wife free-hand drew about 50 bunnies. Mike sent them to Warner Bros. and asked, which one can we use? So essentially, Warner Bros ended up choosing the logo you see on the Bunny-Luv bags today. Kind of cool huh?
Carrot Cake Oatmeal
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon butter
- 1/2 cup shredded carrots
- 1/2 cup diced and peeled Granny Smith apple
- 1 cup nonfat milk
- 3 cups water
- 2 cups dry, old-fashioned oats
- 1/2 cup golden raisins
- 1/4 cup light brown sugar
- 2 Tablespoons agave syrup
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla bean paste
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Directions
- Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. Saute carrots and apple until slightly softened, about 2-3 minutes.
- Add carrot-apple mixture to a pot with milk and water and bring to a boil. Add oatmeal, cover and turn the heat down to a simmer, cooking for 5 minutes more. Stir in raisins, sugar, agave, vanilla and cinnamon. Continue cooking until creamy, about 5 minutes more.
- Serving size: 1-1/4 cup
- Calories: 349
- Fat: 6 g
- Saturated fat: 2 g
- Unsaturated fat: 3 g
- Carbohydrates: 69 g
- Sugar: 38 g
- Fiber: 6 g
- Protein: 8 g
- Cholesterol: 9 mg
Leslie says
Loved the carrot story, thanks for sharing!
Samantha says
Yes! I LOVE anything revolving around carrot cake. What a great way to wake up in the morning.
HPH says
Thanks so much for the info Cathy!
I always knew in my heart that ‘baby’ carrots were the sweeter inside of a ‘regular’ carrot. But I figured they were a by-product of production carrot shredding.
So glad your family member ‘created’ these. Not only are they yummy, it’s a wonderful thing in today’s throw-away society.
Enjoy your Day!
Karen Terry says
Loved this today! Thank you for sharing your trip not only to the farm, but to memory lane. Love your writing and recipes.
Kirsten | My Kitchen in the Rockies says
My daughter got to ride on one of those buses on a school trip once. The kids called it the disco bus. Well, I won’t share my thoughts about this bus with you. 😉 I am a huge carrot cake fan myself, but haven’t baked one lately. Thanks for the reminder. Happy birthday to your husband!
Cathy says
Ha-ha. I know, we all died laughing when we got on the bus. Funny glitch.
Gretchen @ Two Healthy Kitchens says
You really do have the best job! I want to go on some of those field trips, too! Love the carrot journey – super interesting! And how fun that you know the ‘father of baby carrots!’ These are a staple at my house! My little one loves them with ranch, my hubby prefers hummus. But there are usually several bags in my fridge!
Ok. Carrot cake oatmeal? I want to be best friends with carrot cake oatmeal. I need this in my life! Thanks for an amazing recipe – I cannot WAIT for this!! 🙂
Sandy @ RE says
Love this Cathy! Hope to see you this year, too! 🙂
Harrison says
Very cool story, and I’m salivating at the thought of a bowl of ‘carrot cake’ oatmeal. I’d definitely need to give this a try. I have one gripe though…
Carrot cake isn’t carrot cake without the creme cheese icing. I think I might try doing something with a bit of creme cheese, honey and plain yogurt. I notice you’ve got something creme on the top of your glamour shot at the top of the post. I’m curious what you did there 🙂
Cathy says
Greek yogurt.
John says
Great article, just came across it whilst researching how to visit Grimmways.
The full baby carrot story is in the World Carrot Museum plus just about everything else carroty!