When my mom was around 8 years old, she came home from school and told my grandma all about this carrot salad that they served at school. My grandma was teacher and new what carrot salad my mom was talking about. Being a teacher she also valued encouraging creativity and curiosity. She had never made the salad before, but new the general ingredients. She took my mom shopping and bought all the ingredients.

They came home and mixed the ingredients together with a little bit of this and a little bit of that and created a carrot salad measured in love. This became my moms signature dish. She brought it to every holiday and family gathering. As she got older her responsibilities branched to different types of salads that had fun being creative with, but the carrot salad always stayed the same. When I was young I remember her teaching me how to make it. There were no measurements, it was all about what it looked like.

My daughter doesn’t like 2 of the 4 ingredients in the salad so I hadn’t made it in years. My husband and I have been talking about family traditions and favorite dishes and as Easter is approaching, carrot salad came to mind. I called my mom and asked for measurements to the 4 ingredients that I remembered. She sweetly informed me there were none. So we talked about the process of making it and what it is supposed to look like and so forth.

We bought all of the ingredients and started putting them together. I of course knew that I wanted to share this recipe with you, so that meant I needed a recipe to share. I made sure to measure everything and stuck it in the fridge to rest. When I took that first bite I felt like I was 13 again at Easter dinner. My husband tried it and low and behold we have reinstated a family tradition.

THE INGREDIENTS

• Carrots – The sweeter the carrot the sweeter the salad. I am sure that homegrown carrots would taste the best, but I have always used store bought because that is what I had. I also usually only use orange carrots, I am sure other colors would be just as delicious. If you decide to mix colors, keep in mind that the colors will probably bleed on to each other creating a confusing mess. I would suggest doing one color, whatever color that is, just do one.
• Mayonnaise – I am a California girl and grew up on Best Foods Mayo. To this day that is my favorite mayo, but I did make the switch to avocado oil mayo. I know this is a hot topic, and there are serious opinions on all sides. So whatever mayo camp you are in, use your favorite, that can be Miracle Whip, Dukes, Best Foods, or any other brand. I am using my avocado oil mayo and enjoying it.
• Raisins – I am using Thompsons Organic Raisins from Azure Standard. They are delicious and not full of pesticides. You can use whatever raisin is your favorite, including golden.
• Pineapple – Crushed pineapple is the perfect pineapple for this salad. If you do not have crushed pineapple you can take fresh pineapple and blend it. You could also take pineapple chunks or rings and slice them up really small, creating crushed pineapple. You just want small pieces of sweet acidic pineapple all the way through the whole salad. Having some in every bite makes a big difference.

Carrot Salad is really a slaw, but is called a salad. The pineapple acid breaks down the carrots, and they mayo really balances the acid out. An optional ingredient is salt and or sugar. I don’t think this recipe needs either really, but if I were to add anything it would be a tiny bit of salt. Salt brings out the sweetness in all of the ingredients, so if you don’t have sweet tasting carrots, or your pineapple juice is more acidic, then you may need to add a little salt or sugar to make everything taste balanced.

THE CHRISTMAS KITCHEN – A GLUTEN-FREE HOLIDAY MADE EASY (E-BOOK)

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We love to make memories building gingerbread houses or frosting cookies to give away. Making homemade ornaments or simmer pots that make the house smell better than a candle store. We gather together as a family and make things together. All the while laughing, talking, remembering and most importantly opening our hearts to one another.…

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Tags: Christmas, E-book, Gingerbread, Gluten Free, Recipes

Sourcing Bulk Ingredients

Most of my ingredients I try to source in bulk. I do enough cooking and baking from scratch that it is more cost effective for me to purchase in bulk. If you are interested in building your pantry on a budget, I highly suggest checking out Azure Standard. I can order from them once a month if I want to, which I don’t need to do that. I then meet a semi-truck at a specific drop location. Everyone purchasing helps unload all the product for that drop and then we take our goods and head home. I have saved so much money this way. For example, the items I have purchased in bulk for this recipe are: the raisins and pineapple all of which I get from Azure Standard. I purchase my mayonnaise from Costco.

If you have not started to purchase in bulk, I highly suggest you start. Take the time to do a price comparison, especially on spices and flours. Now let’s get to the recipe…

Carrot Salad

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Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Chill Time 2 hours hrs

Course Side Dish

Servings 6

Calories 112 kcal

Equipment

• Grater
• Large Bowl
• Silicone Spatula

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 4 cups Grated Carrot (About 4 large carrots)
• 1/2 cup Raisins
• 1/2 cup Crushed Pineapple
• 1/3 cup Avocado Oil Mayonnaise (Or mayo of choice)

Instructions

 

• Grate carrots.
• Add all ingredients in a medium bowl.
• Stir well until thoroughly combined and evenly coated.
• Chill for 1-2 hours or overnight.
• Enjoy!

Notes

The longer the salad chills, the more the carrots will break down and the flavors will meld.  Your chill time will be a preference based on texture and flavor. 

Nutrition

Calories: 112kcalCarbohydrates: 22gProtein: 1gFat: 3gSaturated Fat: 0.5gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0.01gCholesterol: 2mgSodium: 165mgPotassium: 401mgFiber: 3gSugar: 7gVitamin A: 14274IUVitamin C: 8mgCalcium: 35mgIron: 1mg

Keyword Carrot, Easter, Holiday, Pineapple, Raisin, Salad, Slaw

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

If you liked this recipe, you should check out our Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Surprise Cookies, Oatmeal Christmas Cookies and our Gluten and Dairy Free Peppermint Brownies. All of three of these recipes can be found in our E-book The Christmas Kitchen – A Gluten-Free Holiday Made Easy. We will be launching new recipes and projects weekly so keep checking back to see what is new.