Roasted Carrot & Watercress Salad w Moroccan Dressing
PREP TIME: 20mins
COOKING TIME: 25mins
This salad is a little Moroccan in inspiration. I like to use a mix of rainbow carrots here and I think the smaller baby carrots looks better but any carrot will be delicious. I love the sweetness the fudgy dates add mixed with the roasted hazelnuts and spicy dressing with orange blossom water. A real knock out salad .
The addition of a soft goats cheese would be wonderful too.
Serving Suggestion:
I served this along with a Chickpea & Aubergine Moussaka which was a good pairing.
Serves 4
The elements of the salad can be made a day ahead and combined just before you are ready to serve.
Can be served cold or at room temperature.
Ingredients:
- 60g blanched hazelnuts
- 400g baby carrots, scrubbed (or peeled) tops left on if young enough
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1 teaspoon pomegranate molasses (see kitchen note)
- 2 teaspoons thyme leaves
- 1 shallot, very finely slice
- small packet watercress salad
- 6 soft medjool dates
- salt & pepper
- extra virgin olive oil
Moroccan Dressing
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon sweet paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon chilli flakes
- juice of 1 lemon
- drizzle of honey
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- splash of orange blossom water (opt) (see note)
- 80g soft goats cheese, roughly crumbled (opt)
Method:
- Preheat the oven to 200c
- Scatter the hazelnuts into a small baking tray and roast in the oven for 8010 minutes or until it smells toasty. If using hazelnuts with skins, simply tip into a tea towel and rub away the skins. Chop nuts roughly and set aside. This can be done a few days ahead.
- Arrange the carrots in a heavy-based roasting tin, drizzle with honey and pomegranate molasses, scatter on the thyme leaves and season well. Toss the carrots by hand and roast for 20/30min, or until the carrots are cooked through but still retaining a little bite. A little crunchy caramelisation around the skinny ends is a good thing. Remove from the oven and set aside.
- While the carrots are roasting, make the dressing. Put all the the ingredients in a clean jar with a lid and shake together – taste and season.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the shallots, watercress, dates and hazelnuts. Add the warm/cooled carrots and enough dressing to coat everything lightly. Add the crumbled cheese if using and serve.
Kitchen Notes:
MIDDLE EASTERN INGREDIENTS:
Pomegranate Molasses (also known as pomegranate syrup) is made by simply reducing pomegranate juice into a thickened syrup. It is absolutely gorgeous, sweet and tangy and is ideal for adding to dressings, marinades and I love it on ice cream too.
Orange Blossom Water is a flower water (like rosewater) that’s made from the blossoms on orange trees. It’s a wonderfully floral, citrus flavor to add to baked goods, salads, and drinks.
The key to using any flower water is to not overdo it. Orange blossom water adds a lovely flavor to a dish, but it is deceptively strong. To keep your dish from being overly floral, use a small amount of orange blossom water and taste as you add it to make sure it’s not overpowering the dish.
