Hello, my name is Angela. It’s very nice to meet you.
Lately I’m enjoying…
- Sunshine
- Walks around the neighbourhood
- Bunny spottings
- Epsom salt baths before bed
- Homemade juice
- Fresh hair do’s
- Homemade Lemon Sugar Scrub on face and body
- Purging unwanted household items for donation
- Horses on the farm
- Melting snow and peeking grass
- Tea with girlfriends
- Deep stretches
- Anything no bake, especially date squares!
- Colour on my plate and in my closet
- Red and Gold BEETS
What are you enjoying lately?
This week, the sun is back and the temperature seems to be ever so slowly creeping upwards. Five degrees and sunshine? I’ll take it. And I’ll raise you 20 degrees. bahaha.
This better not be an April Fool’s joke because I’m finally ready for Spring…bring it on!
Yesterday, I was in such good spirits, all I could think about was making an energizing raw salad to fit my mood. I always feel so uplifted when I eat salads, so I thought I could take it to a new level with this fun beet, carrot, and apple salad served over a bed of greens.
My relationship with beets growing up was a rocky one and I occasionally still have nightmares about the pseudo Jell-O canned beets my dad used to encourage me to try. Last year, I fell in love with beets when I started to juice with them. After juicing, I got a bit more daring and tried this amazing cooked beet salad at Karyn’s on Green in Chicago. Things have been going pretty well in our relationship, so I decided to put my fears aside and give a raw beet salad a shot! Who knows, maybe we’d take our relationship to a whole new level?
[print_this]
Spring Clean Raw Beet, Carrot, & Apple Salad
Adapted from Chocolate and Zucchini.
Ingredients:
- 2 medium carrots, peeled
- 1 large red beet, peeled
- 1 large golden beet, peeled
- 1 apple (sweet variety), chopped
- 1 garlic clove, minced (or less if you are not a garlic fan)
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- Red pepper flakes, to taste (I used a couple shakes)
- 1/2 tbsp pure maple syrup, to taste
- Kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste (I used about 1/4 tsp salt)
- 2-3 tbsp Sesame seeds
- 3-4 tbsp Chopped almonds
Directions:
1. Trim, peel, and grate the carrots and beets. You can use a food processor with a grater attachment if preferred). Chop apple and place the grates beets, carrot, and chopped apple into a large bowl.
2. Assemble the dressing by whisking together the minced garlic, EVOO, lemon juice, vinegar, red pepper flakes, maple syrup, salt, and pepper. Adjust dressing to taste. Pour the dressing onto the vegetables and mix well. Allow to sit for at least a half hour so the flavours can develop.
3. Add in your desired seeds and nuts and serve chilled or at room temperature over a bed of greens. Makes 2 servings.
[/print_this]
This would be a good time to whip out those ginormous lunch lady gloves that are supposed to be a size ‘small’. ;)
Creepy, yet functional. And no pink stained hands!
Oh…Eric tells me that I forgot to mention an OXO gadget yesterday. I did it on purpose because I never use this thing!
Meet the Apple Slicer. Eric LOVES this gadget and I make fun of him for being too lazy to slice an apple. I mean, do we really need to save time slicing an apple? Are apples difficult to slice? I never see a need to use it, but he uses it all the time and constantly raves about it. I used it yesterday for this salad and I have to admit it was a bit fun. ;) Shhh don’t tell him I said that.
Sometimes I put produce stickers on it to annoy him. Remember, our war? It rages on my friends.
For this salad, you can grate everything by hand and kick it old school like I did or you can use a food processor if you have a grate attachment.
Note to self: Figure out how to use processor grate attachment stat.
At the last minute, I mixed in a hefty portion of sesame seeds and some chopped almonds for some healthy fats and protein. The chopped almonds gave it a nice texture and crunch!
When I first tried this salad, I was not very impressed. It just tasted a bit off and the flavour wasn’t what I expected after using so many wonderful seasonings. I read the original recipe and I realized that it said to let the salad stand for about 30 minutes to let the flavours develop!
Ah, this made sense. And you know what? It rocked my world after letting it stand for about 30-40 minutes and it was even better several hours later when I had it with dinner. It was a bit sweet, a bit tangy, a bit spicy, and a bit garlicky. Somehow it just worked for me. I really had a kick to my step after eating this! I enjoyed it with an Ezekiel English muffin with hummus.
I’m off to see my doctor about my tailbone. I am happy to report that my tailbone pain has improved quite a bit over the past several days. I’m doing lots of back stretches twice a day as well as Epsom salt baths and light walking. Sitting is not good for the back, so I have been trying to stay active on my feet and get up from the desk frequently to stretch. Today, I’m hoping to get the approval from the doc to do some non-impact elliptical exercise at the gym until I’m back to 100%. This girl needs to sweat!
Coming up: One of my favourite baked goods so far in 2011. They have no refined flour, no white sugar, no added fat, no soy, and can be made gluten-free to boot. :)
This looks so fresh, colorful and healthy! It’s just a shame I don’t like beets. ;)
I LOVE beets!! this salad looks so vibrant and flavorful!! I hope your good mood vibes continue. :)
I’m loving the colours in this salad! It’s funny, my boyfriend and I have a produce sticker war going on as well – he sticks them to our kitchen backsplash and tries to see how many can accumulate before I get annoyed and rip them all down – his record is 4 and he thinks it’s hilarious lol.
oh, my fingers are crossed for you that you get the Elliptical OK, angela!
this sunshine-streak we’re on is glorious – it DOES raise the spirits!
I love beets! I used to be so afraid of them but now i can’t get enough of them! Especially the color! I’m so sorry bout your tailbone! That’s the worst pain when falling on ice. Trust me I have been there!
Loving the surgeon glove! because otherwise it would look like you performed surgery on someone!! lol Looks delish!
Ooh just saw your link for the lemon sugar scrub :) I’m ready to make that ASAP! I love homemade beauty products.
it’s so easy + cheap…I love it!
Same! I was hooked on the LUSH sea salt scrub but it’s SO expensive…a little salt + lime does the exact same thing in my opinion!
Deep stretches are priceless :) This salad looks so refreshing!
*gasp* I didn’t even know golden beet existed. Does it exist in the UK?! Must get down to wholefoods immediately…
That salad sounds delicious! One of my favourite things about spring is all the brightly coloured delicious produce. I just tried golden beets for the first time yesterday, but rather than eating them raw, I roasted them in the oven with some herbs, lemon juice and olive oil. (http://wp.me/pSUCS-1Rg) They were delicious! I am not a huge fan of purple beets because I find the taste is really strong, but the golden ones were great. I hope you have a great day Ange, and enjoy the sunshine!
Raw beetroot is so tasty. It is very nice combined with orange juice and sunflower seeds too. Another of my faves is beetroot risotto. It looks so beautiful and tastes fantastic too. I use a recipe from food.com
mmm those sounds wonderful. Sunflower seeds is a great idea too!
Dear Angela, Please make me this salad. I will be forever in your debt. Love, me :)
:)
I saw your Q about dandelion greens- I like to add some into my GM’s for a detoxifying effect!
Thanks for the recommendation. Great idea!
I love beets, but have always eaten them cooked. (I usually roast or boil them). But this looks delicious.
I’m definitely with you on the gloves! I pulled them out not too long ago to make Kimchi (and my hands STILL felt the burn!). They are laughably large on my hands too!
~
He, he, he . . . that is to funny about the stickers and apple slicer. My husband is the same way. We got one of those way back when we got married and my husband thought it was the best thing. I was like. . .by the time you find that in the drawer I will have a apple all sliced and ready to go!
The salad looks amazing! I so wish that I wasn’t allergic to beets, I mean really who is allergic to beets? And I am one of those that has always loved them. I have faith though that some way I will conquer these dump allergies.
I hope your bum starts feeling better!
Haha – most people wouldn’t care if they were allergic to vegetables! I think I’d die…;)
How do you know your allergic?
Love the positive list. I really wish I had a bath-tub to take a bath!! Grr – just a shower tub…
Well, I assume that I am allergic. Beets, spinach, broccoli, and sometime zucchini puts my stomach in such pain that I will get sick from the pain (if you know what I mean;). I have tried digestive enzymes and they help a little. The doctor said just don’t eat them. I have a hard time excepting that though. It just stinks because this is what I want to eat but junk food does just fine with my stomach(?). Like I said, one day I will figure it out, oh I will!
Oh I’m so sorry to hear that! Well – there are other veggies?! Hopefully they don’t all bother you. And hey – other foods aren’t junk!! There’s lots of good food besides veggies.
Chocolate inlcuded of course :)
Sounds like Lipid Transfer Syndrome related food allergy. I’d research this if I were you :)
I love those jello beets! Weird, I know!
I’ve been loving lentils, blueberry tea, the elliptical, Paramore and being a puppy momma!
I’m not a fan of beets but I can definitely see myself making this with another type of veggie :)
I love the color of this salad! I don’t eat many beets which is too bad. I think they taste so good.
Good luck at the doctor today!
I’m with your hubby on the apple slicer. Brilliant invention! My mom just gave me a large size version for doing melons :)
This salad looks awesome!! We had a few days of warm weather a couple of weeks ago and it’s made me crave raw veggies like crazy! I can’t wait to try this.
This salad screams fresh, clean, and healthy but oh so tasty. I’m intrigued by the apple/beet combo!
I loooooooove beats & I can’t wait to try this salad! It looks so fresh & spring-y!
I’m loving the sunshine and skirts right now, even though it’s still just above freezing! Random odd confession: I am terrified of produce stickers. I remember my mom sticking a banana sticker on me when I was little and I absolutely freaked out… I think I was traumatized, and they’ve creeped me out ever since then. I still avoid them like the plague. ;-)
haha that is random! they are quite creepy now that I think about it. LOL
Wow. . . this makes me crave my usual raw salad for lunch today. Instead, I’ll be at a legislative luncheon, where some type of boring chicken or beef is sure to be on the menu (and I’ll be lucky if there’s a veg option. . .). I’ll make up for my missed salad at dinner, and follow it with some banana/cherry soft-serve to fill out my raw quota for the day. OK, now I have something to look forward to. ;)
That sounds like a great plan!
I forced myself to fall in love with beets when they became 50% of our CSA share at times last summer ;) It worked out really well; I found out I love them roasted, and that my husband makes a mean borscht! Haha. Actually quite delicious. Kind of how this salad looks :) Good luck with the doc today!
yes, we got a lot of beets in our CSA too! oodles and oodles.
I LOVE my elliptical. It’s not 100% like running, but I find it’s close. I can really get my heart rate up there (more so than if I biked). I had to stop running due to my ankle, but the elliptical allows me to get a decent workout in (although I wish I could do it outside). Did you know that raising the incline doesn’t increase the intensity (like running uphill does), it just works different muscles in your leg. I didn’t know that until we bought one the the salesguy told us. Anyway, I hope your tailbone is better!
The elliptical is my favourite cardio machine! It will be nice for a change. :)
YES! This recipe looks amazing (mostly because beets are my faaavorite veggie!).
So glad to hear you are doing better…hopefully you get to hear some good news today!
so fresh and so clean!
I love the gloves. too cute you are!
lol, I use my apple slicer daily! In fact, I got so tired of having to clean it constantly that I bought a second one so that I always have one that’s clean. I love that it gives uniform slices and takes like two seconds!
I wish I could like having salads more often. I don’t know what combinations do it, but for some reason it’s just not filling, even though I add plenty of fat, protein and fiber. Something about eating “just” a salad makes my stomach burn a little. Ugh.
I hope the doctor can give you some answers for your poor tailbone. And can I just say again how amazing those date bars are! I had to give the rest of the batch to my friend because I don’t think eating three bars for lunch was my best idea ;)
Although after eating them, I did have a TON of energy that I burned off at the gym.
haha nice :) I had to make a second batch this week! I was in withdrawal. they make a great dessert bar too.
I hear you about salads not being filling. I always have my salad with something else, in this case an English muffin slathered in hummus did the trick til snacktime :)
Oh what a good idea! A nice slice of Udi’s bread with some hummus sounds really good right now.
“Note to self: Figure out how to use processor grate attachment stat.” So do I !! Not sure why in the 3 years of having my wonderful and helpful food processor I have never bothered to learn how to use any of the attachments ?!
haha Glad im not the only one…I tried to put it together and failed. I was like ‘am I missing a part or something???’ lol, it did not seem right what I did so I gave up and used some elbow grease ;)
I did the SAME THING LOL LOL! ;D …couldn’t get the thing to fit together right, so was forced to elbow grease it … I really need to figure that darn thing out one of these days.
hahaha where is that damn manual when you need it???
That is so beautiful! And it looks delicious. :)
That beet salad looks very refreshing, and so colorful!
Holy gorgeous pictures. You never cease to amaze me with the beauty of your photographs. Those colors are a balm to my weary eyes.
thank you!!
That golden beet looks gorge! I actually saw those for the first time the other day and thought to myself, “Self, I want to make something with that.”
Then bam, you hit me with this recipe!
This is such a beautiful salad! I just with I liked raw beets, but maybe mixes with apples and carrots they wouldn’t be so bad :)
the apple is key!
What a refreshing sounding recipe! I absolutely adore beets so I can’t wait to try this recipe. Also, might I recommend that anyone with a penchant for beets read “Jitterbug Perfume” by Tom Robbins as it opens with the most beautiful ode to the beet that I could ever imagine.
I love beets and sesame seeds compliment them so well
Glad you’re feeling better!
This salad looks absolutely lovely. I know what you mean about the apple slicer… I never use mine either. I prefer tinier slices so it takes me longer to eat the apple. I do use my mango slicer, though! A friend gave me one for my bday last year.
The sticker thing made me giggle. :)
OMG I JUST BOUGHT A BEET! Now I know how to use it wooooooo thanks :)
Mm, it’s been a while since I’ve had beets and now I’m craving them! :)
The salad is so pretty!!! I feel like a bad food blogger admitting this-but I’ve never actually tried beets! I always just imagine them being bitter.
I think many people haven’t tried them before….I always thought they were gross! It’s a taste you develop overtime I think :)
That is gorgeous! It might even get me to like beets being that pretty!
Great idea on the gloves. I grated some beets a couple of weeks ago, and wow…were my hands stained.
I am always nervous to buy beets because I don’t want to deal with the staining. I just may try this recipe out though (with gloves on of course!!!). Good luck @ the doctors! Hope you hear some great news.
I can’t stop eating beets! I just discovered them somehow a few months ago and they’re SO. GOOD. My husband makes fun of me because I constantly have beets on my plate and every time we’re in the store, I sneak over and grab a bunch :)
Your photography is truly beautiful Angela….and I love your list. I’ve been enjoying time off work, walks with the pup, running in the sun, reading, spring sounds, being at home when my man comes in from work :-)
Thanks Emma. Love your list…Spring sounds are the best!
I just had beets for the FIRST time yesterday!! Where have they been all my life?!
This recipe is on my “need to make ASAP” list.
That salad is gorgeous. I love the colors! Unfortunately – try as I might – I cannot get into beets. Don’t you hate when you know something is good for you (not to mention pretty in dishes!) but you just don’t care for it?!
Good luck with your tail end! :)
yes I feel that way with swiss chard!
I love love looove beets – I love them roasted the most!
I’m embarassed to say, I’ve only had the canned/jarred beets. But looks like the fresh kind might be in my future, I love trying new foods!
Yes, you must learn to use your grater attachment on your food processor. I never knew how the heck to use those “extra attachements” that just got in my way all the time when pulling mine out. But I shredded a whole block of cheese in 5 seconds flat the other day, it was awesome!
Good luck today :)
Yum! I bet I’d love that salad :-)
I love beets, and I can’t wait to make this! Maybe stuffing it into a wrap with hummus!