Quick, easy and very tasty salad to boost your vitamin A intake and give your hair some shine!

I have two boys. One of them is a more adventurous eater, who likes asparagus, beans, sashimi and… Nutella. The other one likes carrots and cucumbers. Tomato soup works, too. Both of them really like this salad. It is a salad I grew up eating as well. There were no rainbow carrots back then in Poland but the taste was pretty much the same.

It is one of the easiest and quickest salads to make. Kids can definitely help make it. It is a perfect side dish to accompany some baked chicken, pork chops or fish. If you can’t find any rainbow carrots, use regular ones.

Sometimes, I like to change things a bit and also add additional fruit and some nuts:

• 2 tablespoons soaked raisins, or
• 1/4 cup chopped canned peaches, or
• 1/4 cup chopped canned pineapple, or
• 1 orange, chopped, and
• a handful of walnuts pieces.

Carrots are full of vitamins, calcium, iron and fiber. They have the highest amount of beta-carotene which is a precursor for vitamin A. Beta-carotene is transformed into vitamin A during digestion. Vitamin A is well known to support good vision and eye health. Carrots are also full of antioxidants that help keep our skin looking younger and our hair shiner. They also have strong cleansing properties and are a great help in detoxing the liver. Carrots should be consumed 2-3 times a week at minimum. I hope that you are now convinced to incorporate more carrots into your diet.

Start the salad by washing and peeling your carrots and an apple. If you have a little helpers at home, ask them to do it. There is some evidence suggesting that kids are more willing to try a new dish if they helped to make it.

Next, grate the carrots and an apple on the grater, using the side with either the biggest or smallest holes. Grating on the biggest holes (which is what I did on the pictures above) will create more crunch. If you are hoping that your picky little (or big!) eater will ask for seconds of this salad, use the side with smaller holes. Or make the salad twice and each time  grate on a different side. See which one you and your family like more.

Place the grated carrots and apple in a bowl. Next, you can either make the dressing separately or add the ingredients directly into the bowl. I typically just add everything into the bowl: drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, squeeze of lemon juice, chopped dill, touch of salt, sugar and pepper. Give it a good stir, taste and adjust the seasonings. It should be a bit sweet, a bit sour and salty. If it seems too bland, add more lemon juice and then a touch of sugar and salt again.

Serves: 4      Prep time: 15 minutes     Ready in: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

• 4 large carrots, washed, peeled, grated
• 1 apple, peeled, grated
• 2 tablespoons fresh dill, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1.5 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• hemp hearts

Directions:

1. Wash and peel the carrots. Grate them using either the side with largest holes or the smallest ones. Place into a mixing bowl.
2. Wash, peel and grate the apple using the same side of the grater. Add to the bowl.
3. Chop fresh dill and add into the bowl as well.
4. Drizzle the salad with olive oil, lemon juice, then add sugar, salt and pepper. Stir well. Adjust the seasonings.
5. Sprinkle some hemp hearts on top.
6. Serve at once.

Enjoy!