Hey there, I hope you’ve had a merry Christmas, a happy new year and (in this part of the world at least) a fantastic summer break!
I’ve been having a super-duper trip around the upper North Island, catching up with lots of family and friends, staying at other people’s houses and spending a lot more time in the water than I would usually do in Dunedin. It really has been bliss.
One of the things I love to do in other people’s houses is peruse their recipe book collection and discover books I haven’t seen before. Despite the fact that my own recipe book collection is threatening to take over our house, I discovered another “must-have” – Ripe By Angela Redfern – the first recipe book for Ripe Deli in Auckland’s Richmond Road. The emphasis is on fresh seasonal ingredients, the photography is beautiful, and there are so many recipes in this book that I want to make. But the one I’ve now taken to two barbecues, and had so many comments on (even from the most hardened beetroot-phobes) was this one.
Thanks so much to Joi and Justin for the recipe book inspiration, the lovely lovely accommodation, and the excellent photography props! And of course to Ripe Deli for the original recipe.
Raw Energy Salad
The original recipe for this delicious salad is here, and below is my adaptation. I didn’t have any pomegranate molasses (as in the original recipe) and couldn’t find any – it was delicious without it, but I’m sure it would be even better with it included. If you have pomegranate molasses, leave out the coconut sugar and use 1 – 2 tablespoons of pomegranate molasses instead.
Salad:
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
2 teaspoons soy sauce or tamari
500g raw beetroot, peeled and grated
750g raw carrots, peeled (if not organic) and grated
2 apples, peeled (if not organic) and grated
1 cup fresh mint leaves, finely sliced
1/2 cup raisins
Dressing:
1 tablespoon coconut sugar
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon honey
Preheat oven to 170 degrees Celsius. Stir the soy sauce/tamari through the pumpkin and sunflower seeds, place on a lined baking tray and bake for 10 – 15 minutes, stirring once or twice to ensure they don’t burn. (Alternatively if you’ve made some of my Super Seed Mix, you could add that instead). Once lightly toasted, remove from oven and allow to cool.
In a large serving bowl, mix the prepared beetroot, carrot, apple, mint, raisins and seeds (reserve a few seeds and mint leaves to garnish salad). Place the dressing ingredients in a jar with a tight-fitting lid and shake well to combine.
Pour the dressing over the salad and mix well. Stir again just before serving, and sprinkle over reserved garnish ingredients.
Enjoy!
NB. To keep it totally raw, leave the seeds untoasted, and add a dash of soy sauce to the dressing instead.
