Glazed Carrots with Bacon and Pecans

This is another recipe I tweaked a bit from The Best Vegetable Recipes. This has to be my favorite way to eat carrots! It's probably not the healthiest due to the bacon in it, but I think the taste of it makes it worth it!

Ingredients:

• 3 ounces (about 3 slices) bacon
• 1/3 cup chopped pecans
• 1 pound carrots (about 6 medium), peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick on the bias
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. thyme
• 3 Tbsp. light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 Tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
• Ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Cook the bacon in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until crisp. Transfer bacon to a paper-towel lined plate to drain. Crumble bacon.

2. Remove all but 1 Tbsp. bacon drippings from the pan. Add the pecans and cook until fragrant and slightly browned, about 3 minutes. Transfer the pecans to the plate with the bacon.

3. Add the carrots, salt,, thyme, 1 Tbsp. of the brown sugar and broth to the skillet. Bring to a boil, covered, over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the carrots are almost tender when poked with the tip of a paring knife, about 5 minutes. Uncover, increase the heat to high, and simmer rapidly, stirring occasionally, until the liquid is reduced to about 2 Tbsp.

4. Add the butter and the remaining 2 Tbsp. brown sugar to the skillet. Toss the carrots to coat and cook, stirring frequently, until the carrots are completely tender. Off the heat, add the bacon and pecans and toss. Transfer the carrots to a serving dish, scraping the glaze from the pan into the dish. Season to taste with pepper and serve.