carrot ribbons, toasted pine nuts, and cranberries with an herb dressing
Carrots are such a wonderful fall and winter vegetable, but I usually find myself cooking them rather than eating them raw. Maybe dipped in some hummus, but other than that, they are just too hard and dry. This salad, however, has changed my mind about the deliciousness of raw carrots.
The first game changer was how I cut my carrots. I made ribbons. The thin slices not only look beautiful but are not as hard to chew. To make the ribbons you can use a mandoline or kitchen aid attachment or if you don’t have those, break out a vegetable peeler and just start peeling the ribbons (it will take a bit of time this way, but it is worth it).
The other important step to this recipe is infusing your oil for your dressing. Rosemerry and fennel need the heat here to help their favors permeate the oil quickly and create an amazing dressing.
The carrot ribbons can tend to stick and bunch together, so just make sure to break up any clumps when you toss the salad in the dressing.
Since it doesn’t have leafy greens, you can make it well in advance and not have to worry about anything wilting or getting soggy. This salad is perfect for fall or winter and would pair perfectly with a roast or stew. Hope you enjoy!
– The Recipe –
Cranberry Carrot Salad
prep time:5-10 min
total time:20 min
makes: 8 cups
Ingredients
salad
- 8 c ribboned carrots
- 1/4 c thinly sliced onion
- 1/4 c pine nuts
- 3/4 c dried cranberries
dressing
- 1/4 c olive oil
- 1/2 tsp rosemarry
- 1/2 tsp garlic
- 1/4 tsp fennel seed
- 1/8 tsp pepper
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1.5 tsp lemon juice
Directions
- In a small saucepan on medium low heat, heat the seasonings and olive oil for one minute then turn off heat and allow to sit.
- Peel and ribbon your carrots and place in a large bowl.
- Thinly slice your onion and add to the carrots.
- Toast the pine nuts on medium heat for 3-4 minutes until they begin to brown.
- While toasting, roughly chop the cranberries and add to the carrots.
- Remove the pine nuts from the heat once toasted and add to the carrots.
- Add the lemon juice to the oil and whisk to combine.
- Pour the dressing over the salad and toss.
Apricity 