Welcome to the Carrot Cult

We all feel the excitement in the air when summer quickly comes to a close and the first frosts beckon. It’s time for those last few weeks without extra layers, soaking in the fading daylight, harvesting crops, picking lingonberries, and preparing for the colder months ahead in whatever ways that means for your household.

For those of us regulars at the Tanana Valley Farmers Market in Fairbanks, one such longstanding communal tradition involves waiting in line. For carrots.

Not your typical root vegetable, these acclaimed carrots are grown by Pete and Lynn Mayo of Spinach Creek Farm, which operates off grid and hands on, just northwest of Fairbanks.

All of Spinach Creek’s homegrown offerings at the market and in their CSA share, from beets to cabbages, are beloved, but it’s these carrots that have a straight-up following. They’re not just prized, they’re treasured. Make that… revered.

It’s a rite that marks the changing of seasons in town: the carrots make their buzzed-about debut, and the lines follow. Locals can be seen waiting in line at the twice-weekly farmers market to pick up a bag or three (or ten), and then once the markets close for the year, many are known to drive around town for just one more bag from The Roaming Root Cellar or downtown Co-Op.

While carrots are technically and rightfully classified as a root vegetable, they’re often considered, rather amusingly, a “favorite fruit” and vegetable of Alaska. While that may be hard to believe when your front yard is full of berries, carrots do rule.

It’s no laughing matter—even former governor Bill Walker is known to have openly declared his love for Alaska carrots!

Year after year, carrots remain resilient, flavorful, up for sweet or savory preparations, and as home gardeners and farmers can all attest, even sweeter after a frost or two. Plus, what we learned as kids is true: eat your vegetables! Bright orange carrots are legit sources of vitamin A, which is converted from beta carotene, as well as biotin, potassium, and vitamins B6 and K1.

Keep your eyes peeled for carrots grown with love by other regional farms, including Palmer’s family-run VanderWeele Farm and the iconic Pam’s Carrots, whose logo features a charming cartoon moose nibbling on… you guessed it. And when those carrots debut, grab a bag and tell your friends—the carrots are here!

For more information:
Pam’s Carrots: pamscarrots.com, 907-354-7119

Spinach Creek Farm: As of 2024, market appearances will be limited. Be sure to visit The Roaming Root Cellar’s new College Road location in Fairbanks for carrot sales. roamingrootak.com, @theroamingrootcellar, 907-451-0001

VanderWeele Farms: facebook.com/vanderweelefarm, @vanderweelefarm, 907-745-3597

This article was first published in the Fall 2024 edition of Edible Alaska.