Carrot Salad

My friend Cass is visiting this week. She is such a great foodie friend who has a completely different way of looking at things that seem so obvious after she points it out. Each time she does this, my the door to the food world is opened wider and wider. She is the one who introduced me to kale, poached eggs, frittatas, and many other wonderful things.

Today she offhandedly throws out casually that she eats simple carrot salads all the time, from a recipe she found on Orangette. My brain and stomach simultaneously said "yes, we must try this." So that's exactly what I did.

However, I of course can not leave well enough alone. So instead of garlic, I used chopped red onion and since my lemon was pretty mild and I prefer more acidic flavors, I dumped in a few glugs of sherry vinegar. The resulting salad was a stunning, shocking, bright orange color with a fresh tang and lovely crunch.

I served the carrot salad on top of fresh baby lettuce with 1/2 can white tuna and sunflower seeds. One final dusting of salt, pepper and drizzle of good olive oil and this lunch was perfect for a summer Sunday.

Carrot Salad

1 lb. carrots, grated or julienned

1/2 red onion, diced finely

juice and zest of 1 lemon

2 Tbsp olive oil

salt and pepper

1 Tbsp sherry vinegar

Mix together. Great with tuna and sunflower seeds over field greens.