Cumin Spiced Carrot and Date Salad (And an Ode to the Beautiful Carrot)

Connecting to our plates in a deeper way, Chef Moss shares her love of carrots, their origins and a recipe for Cumin Spiced Rainbow Carrot & Date Salad

—

There is just something about carrots — sweet, crunchy, earthy when raw. Tender and even sweeter when cooked. At the cafe we are always working with carrots, peeling and shredding them on the mandolin for our salads. Slicing them for our pickles or to be stewed in our enchilada vegetable mix. 

Without thought, I regularly grab a slice or the end stump to munch on. If I am away from work for a few days, I tend not to eat carrots the way I do when I am at work (a habit I need to change) — and I arrive in the morning craving them.  

I believe it is more than a nutrient connection, but a deep rooted spiritual one…

The way in which carrots grow deep into the earth, pulling out and absorbing her energies and trace minerals…

Sometimes they will twist and turn as they grow down, avoiding rocks in the dirt — which is another reason why it’s so important to choose organic carrots. You are literally consuming the earth from where they were born. Their flavors change depending upon the time of year and where they were grown. It is amazing — you can taste the rain or lack thereof. You can taste the joyous days of sunshine or the sadness of ones grown indoors…

They not only reach down into the earth, but they also stretch upwards towards the sun, their leafy green tops converting sunshine into food. Eat the tops too, they still taste like carrots married with wild green chlorophyll. 

Can you tell? I really love carrots.

Cumin Spiced Rainbow Carrot and Date Salad

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 2 cups purple carrots washed and sliced on the bias
• 2 cups yellow carrots washed and sliced on the bias
• 2 cups orange carrots washed and sliced on the bias
• 1 cup dried dates 
• 1 bunch fresh parsley leaves roughly chopped
• 3 TBSP olive oil
• 1 TBSP cumin
• 1 TBSP thyme
• 1 tsp coriander 
• 1 tsp powdered turmeric
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 2 TBSP water

Directions:

*Note: Cook the purple carrots separately from the other two colors, they will darken the other colors if cooked together. You will want to use 2 separate baking dishes.

1. Preheat oven to 350F
2. Mix together the cumin, thyme, coriander, turmeric, salt and pepper. Divide into thirds.
3. Toss the purple carrots with 1 TBSP olive oil and one third of the spice mix. Toss the orange and yellow carrots with 2 TBSP olive oil and the other two thirds of the spice mix.  
4. Place the purple carrots in one baking dish and the yellow & orange carrots in another baking dish along with 1 TBSP of water in each dish. Cover both with foil and bake for 30-35 minutes or until tender. Let them cool down.
5. Slice the dates into circles and toss gently with the roasted carrots and chopped parsley in a mixing bowl.
6. Serve at room temperature or chilled. 

---

You may also enjoy eating Eat Your Veggies! Hidden Veggie Muffins: Sneak More Nutrition Into Your Family’s Diet by Christine Moss