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Cashew Carrot Salad

July 31, 2011 By Susan Voisin 69 Comments
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This incredible #vegan carrot salad gets its sweetness from raisins and its creaminess from cashews. No oil, dairy, processed sugar, or gluten. #vegan #wfpb
I’ve discovered a salad that my daughter will gobble up like candy. In fact, she eats so much of it that she’s almost in danger of turning orange! I’m talking, of course, about good, old-fashioned carrot salad–but with a few updates and improvements.

Carrot salads are usually loaded with mayo and sugar, but I’ve found a way to cut out both and wind up with a salad that’s actually more delicious than the regular version.

Carrot-Cashew Salad

The not-so-secret ingredients are cashews and raisins, which when blended produce a creamy, lightly sweetened dressing that brings out carrots’ natural sweetness without smothering them. Normally I use lemon juice to balance out the sweetness, but just for fun this time I substituted orange juice for a sunny burst of flavor.

If you have a good high-speed blender and a food processor, you will not believe how quickly this 6-ingredient recipe comes together.

Cashew Carrot Salad
5 from 4 votes
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Carrot-Cashew Salad

This salad tastes best if allowed to marinate for several hours before serving. The raisins blend better if they’re soaked first, but you can skip the soaking if you have a high-speed blender.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Total Time 10 minutes
Servings 7
Author Susan Voisin

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup raisins
  • 1/2 cup raw cashews
  • 1/4 cup fresh orange juice (or 2 tbsp. lemon juice)
  • 1/4 cup plain soy milk (or other non-dairy milk)
  • 1 pound carrots
  • salt to taste
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Instructions

  • Place the raisins in a bowl and cover with hot water. Soak until raisins are plump. (Place in refrigerator if soaking overnight.)
  • Drain the raisins (you may reserve the water to use for sweetening other dishes). Place 2 tablespoons raisins, 1/4 cup cashews, the orange juice, and the soymilk in a blender and blend on high speed until completely liquefied.
  • Set up your food processor with shredding disk. Trim the carrots, cut them into lengths so that they can fit horizontally in the large feed tube, and shred them in several batches. Place carrots in a large bowl, stir in the cashew cream, and add salt to taste. Stir in the remaining raisins and cashews. Refrigerate for at least an hour and stir before before serving.

Notes

You can bring out the flavor of the cashews by lightly toasting the ones that are tossed into the salad at the end, though I prefer keeping them raw because they’re more nutritious that way.
Nutrition Facts
Carrot-Cashew Salad
Amount Per Serving
Calories 115 Calories from Fat 36
% Daily Value*
Fat 4g6%
Sodium 48mg2%
Carbohydrates 19g6%
Fiber 3g13%
Protein 3g6%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Nutritional info is approximate.

Course Salad, Vegetable
Cuisine Vegan
Have you made this recipe?Mention @SusanFFVK and tag #fatfreevegankitchen in your photos on Instagram.
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Filed Under: Family Favorites, Recipes, Salads, Side Dishes, Vegetables Tagged With: Eat-to-Live, Gluten-free, Higher-fat, Raw, Ridiculously Easy, Soy, Soy-free, Sugar-free, Under 200, Vita-Mix

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Comments

  1. Diane Yaghoobian

    October 17, 2011 at 5:07 pm

    I made and enjoyed this but will stop when the batch is gone because – and this flummoxes me about virtually all “fat free” vegan recipes – it is actually quite high in fat. Nothing with 1/2 cup of cashews could by any stretch be considered fat free. I got Isa Moskowitz’ Appetite for Reduction, supposed to be low fat vegan – NOT. Scavenging on the net, things are apparently called low fat or fat free in a belief the fat you are using is more virtuous. Fat is fat, and raisins are high sugar, no wonder your daughter eats it like candy; it is, albeit more nutrient dense. Maybe if the raisin box read “high fructose concentration” that would ring the appropriate alarm bell. It is certainly a great way to eat raw carrots but it is not fat free or sugar free.

    Reply
    • SusanV

      October 17, 2011 at 5:17 pm

      It is labeled as a higher-fat recipe, not a fat-free one.

      Reply
  2. jessica

    January 13, 2012 at 10:16 am

    so – it’s 11:00 and i just made this to have “for lunch” in a few hours… but half of it is gone already! what an awesome recipe! thanks for sharing it!

    Reply
  3. Gabrielle

    March 3, 2012 at 8:18 pm

    Oh my, Susan. You’ve done it again. I just made this and I cannot bare to leave it in my fridge to marinate. I must eat it right now, its too good. Thanks so much for this recipe. I’m definitely going to make it again!

    Reply
  4. Elena

    March 26, 2012 at 1:47 am

    Mmm…perfect for the warmer weather! Although I would add almond milk….don’t like the phytoestrogens in soy.

    Reply
  5. Mimmi

    April 7, 2012 at 10:44 am

    Hello!
    I tried this carrod salad and found it great! Here in Finland the carrot salad includes only carrot – nothing else, so for me this was a dessert. But what’s better than dessert-salad!

    Reply
  6. Lovisa

    April 9, 2012 at 5:03 am

    Wow. This salad was amazing! Sure to say there are no leftovers, and even my fussy 3-year old son claimed it was “yummy”. Next time I’m bringing salad to a pot-luck, I’m bringing this one.

    Reply
  7. S Price

    May 28, 2012 at 6:20 pm

    Delicious! The dressing was A-mazing! My only recommendation would be to try to squeeze as much water as you can from the carrots before you add the other ingredients because it tasted just a little watered down. I tasted the dressing before I added, so I know it wasn’t that. Other than that, fabulous!

    Reply
  8. serialspinner

    July 29, 2012 at 1:29 pm

    I found your blog through a search for a carrot salad. This one came up and I just made it. Wow!! It’s great! My only deviation from the recipe was to add a little bit of orange zest with the juice.

    Thanks so much for a great collection of recipes. I’m going to spend a lot of time here as I try to clean up our diet.

    Reply
  9. Cheryl

    December 30, 2012 at 7:18 pm

    Thank you so much for this recipe! I make it all the time. I never have raisins here so I substitute craisins or chopped dried plums. My all time favorite salad recipe!

    Reply
  10. Toni Cooper

    March 18, 2013 at 5:31 pm

    Yummmmm! I’m having leftovers for breakfast !!

    Reply
  11. Lilli

    December 29, 2013 at 5:34 am

    My Mum makes an amazing carrot salad, she uses finely chopped hazelnuts instead of cashews and adds finely chopped spring onions and pea shoots. It’s delicious!!

    Reply
  12. Carrie

    October 20, 2014 at 8:21 am

    I made this yesterday and took it to a dinner get together – a big hit and everyone wanted the recipe! Just the right amount of sweetness mixed with the tang of lemon in the dressing. Absolutely delicious and so worthy of my fresh garden carrots. 😉 Thank you, Susan!

    Reply
  13. RawFruitBasedLiving

    February 25, 2015 at 11:06 am

    This looks good. The colour is lovely, and I do think raisins and carrots go well together. I like the pound of carrots! 😉

    Reply
  14. Sarah Mc

    July 31, 2015 at 12:51 pm

    Hi Susan,

    I’m still loving your recipes! But I’m writing to thank you for your post from quite a few months ago about Amzaon’s deal on an electric pressure cooker. I bought one right away, and then let it sit in the box for months (it was my busy work season -yeah, excuses, excuses :-). Anyway, I started using it the past few weeks, and I am totally hooked. It has made making delicious recipes, beans, and intact grains so much easier. So THANK YOU for thinking of your readers, and tipping us off to this great deal. I would pay the same amount again – that’s how much I love this machine!

    Have a great weekend.

    Sarah

    Reply
  15. Olga

    September 13, 2015 at 3:35 pm

    looks fantastic

    Reply
  16. Johanne Beaulieu

    July 22, 2020 at 4:26 am

    How long will this keep in the fridge?

    Reply
    • Susan Voisin

      July 22, 2020 at 10:31 am

      I never keep any prepared food longer than a week.

      Reply
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Susan VoisinI'm Susan Voisin, and I love creating delicious whole foods plant-based dishes with no added oil. Be sure to follow me on Facebook and Instagram.
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