My mother used to make this colourful carrot salad when we were small. It's so simple, is kid-friendly and is a great side dish for a family summer gathering. She grated carrot and beetroot into a bowl, added a few raisins, salt and pepper and some lemon juice and that was it! I've left out the beetroot and given it a Middle Eastern flavour with ground cumin, cinnamon and mint. For a more substantial dish, add some chickpeas and crumbled feta cheese.
500g carrots, coarsely grated
1 shallot or 2 spring onions, finely sliced
50g raisins
50g flaked almonds
25g mint leaves, washed and sliced
1 tbsp cumin seeds, toasted and ground or 1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground cinnamon
zest and juice of 1-2 lemons
sea salt
First of all, toast the cumin seeds in a dry frying pan and then grind in a pestle and mortar. Soak the raisins in a cup of hot water for about 10 minutes so that they plump up.
Put all the ingredients into a large bowl and sprinkle in a small amount of sea salt. Give it a good stir and add the zest and juice of a lemon.
Mix again and put it into the fridge for an hour to let the flavours mingle. Taste before serving and add more lemon juice if needed.
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