Roasting is usually associated with the cold winter months, but as the temperature fluctuates and spring showers have us staying inside, it makes sense to crank up the oven. Bring out the natural sweetness in vegetables like carrots with a slow roast in the oven, allowing them to get tender  and crisp while you save time preparing meals for the week.

An easy starter recipe is Tiffani Thiessen's  Honey-Roasted Carrots with Sesame Seeds (pictured above), which are coated with honey so they blister and get a little sticky in the oven, and then are tossed with soy sauce and sesame seeds for great umami flavor.

Check out more of our favorite ways to use roasted carrots below.

Leftovers Central: Roasted Potatoes, Carrots, Parsnips and Brussels Sprouts

Root vegetables are more popular in winter, but they can be utilized year-round for an easy meal base or side dish. Roast vegetables with a blend of spices — Giada De Laurentiis loves oregano, rosemary, thyme, basil, salt and pepper — and use the leftovers all week (if they last that long!).

Simple Go-To Salad: Lentil Salad with Roasted Carrots and Fennel

Spruce up your lunch with Bobby Deen's lentil salad, filled with roasted carrots, fennel and a zesty cilantro-scallion-parsley vinaigrette.

Unexpected Smoky Side Dish:  Halibut with Brown Butter, Crushed Chickpeas with Olives and Roasted Cumin Carrots

Laura Calder's halibut with brown butter sauce is great on its own, but even better with tender-crisp, cumin-spiced roasted carrots, garlicky mashed chickpeas and a pop of briny olives.

The Lemon Bowl: Vermicelli Noodle Bowls with Shrimp

TasteBook: Carrot Ravioli with Vadouvan Butter and Carrot Top Pesto

Feed Me Phoebe: Salmon Poke Bowls with Pickled Carrots, Avocado and Spicy Ponzu

Taste with the Eyes: Chickpea Spaghetti with Roasted Carrots, Cilantro Dill Pesto #glutenfreevegan

Healthy Eats: 6 Quick Ways to Serve Carrots This Spring

FN Dish: 6 Sensational Ways to Take Carrots Beyond Snacking