raw ribbon salad & almond-lime dressing

it's official: root vegetables season has begun.  last week i found some beautiful carrots and beets in my csa box.  don`t get me wrong, i love my root veggies {and i most definitely love them roasted}, but i am certainly not ready to embrace the looming season change on the horizon.  i am a summer gal through and through and never want it to end.  so when it's still 30+ degrees and sunny and i wanna eat some root veggies, what's a girl to do?

spiralize 'em.

here's my new favourite salad i've been enjoying for lunch and dinner.  it's awesome as is or can be turned into the main event with addition of some grilled tofu, chickpeas or by really bulking up on the seeds & nuts. 

raw ribbon salad
serves 2
1 carrot
1 beet
1/2 a zucchini
2 tbsp fresh chopped cilantro
pepitas, sunflower seeds, or any crunchy seed or nut topper

wash and trim the veggies to fit your spiralizer if you have one - if not, get out your trusty vegetable peeler and you can turn them into long, thin noodles by hand.  layer them up, top with pepitas & fresh cilantro and douse in your favourite dressing.  my current dressing of choice is this almond butter & lime deliciousness.
  
almond butter & lime dressing
2 tbsp almond butter
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp tamari
juice of half a lime
sriracha to taste

whisk together all the ingredients and thin the dressing out to suit your taste with water.  i tend to like this dressing a bit on the thick side so that it really clings to the veggie ribbons instead of filtering through to the bottom of the bowl.  and if almond butter isn't your thing, tahini is a great nut-free stand in.

{obviously veggies come in all shapes and sizes - especially when we're talking about local farm-grown varieties, so by all means, use your judgment on how many you want to spiralize.  the dressing can also be multiplied to feed a backyard army.}

i'd been delaying purchasing this spiralizer online {i'm so lazy when it comes to online shopping}, but came across a different model locally.  it's a whole lotta plastic bits which i would normally avoid but peeling zucchini noodles one by one was starting to wear on me.  the verdict?  it's not the most durable gadget, and i don't see it surviving more than a couple years, but veggie noodles sure are fun and it'll make do!

eat up and stand with me in solidarity as you refuse to let go of summer.  {but i am letting this salad is go on over to ricki's wellness weekend.}


are you with me?  how are you holding summer in your grips?