Broccoli Carrot Slaw With Sweet and Spicy Tahini

Broccoli is an anti-oxidant rich powerhouse that supports healthy cells throughout the body. Plus it tastes good and it’s one of those healthy veggies that even most kids don’t turn up their noses at. That makes it a go-to in my house at all times!

Broccoli at the Fairgrounds…

The very first time I really made this recipe was years ago when I joined forces with three other raw afficionados to set up a booth for a fair in Santa Fe, NM, where I live. I honestly don’t know where our heads were. Somehow we believed that we could successfully bring raw food into the fairground! As if…!

The moment of truth arrived when they placed our booth smack in between Turkey Legs and Fry Bread. As if it could get less raw than that! There we were – pictures of health – with our beautiful green kale salad and broccoli carrot slaw. The smattering of mouth-watering raw desserts were odd competition with the cotton candy three booths down. Preparing this stuff in bulk in accordance with our overblown expectations, required effort bordering on the superhuman. And seeing what we were up against was daunting, to say the least.

It was almost a joke. The crowd we drew was basically standing in front of our booth looking at us as if we were rare animals in a zoo. You could see it on their faces. “What are these people doing here?” They were befuddled. Broccoli? At a fair?

The vendors around us were giving us a round of applause for our sheer chutzpah.No one understood. But they thought we had ‘balls’. I think they also thought we might be insane. For all our efforts and two grueling days of set up at 5 o’clock in the morning in monsoon rains, we made $24.11 in profit. Split four ways. Then it really was a joke. And we did laugh.

A sense of humor is everything.

Just Do It…

The thing is, this is a delicious recipe. I don’t think there’s one person that I’ve served it to, who hasn’t liked it. The kids love it. The only issue is cutting up the broccoli stems. It’s not something we normally do. I’ve often thought a spiralizer would work well for this. But I will offer a bit of a secret. Trader Joes has pre-prepared bags of broccoli stem slaw. Maybe it’s not as great as the DIY version. Maybe you’ll feel it’s cheating… But it’s a pretty great cheat and a fantastic timesaver. Just add more carrots and everything else. You’ll have it all ready in no time!

RAW VEGAN RECIPE: Broccoli Carrot Slaw with Sweet and Spicy Tahini

Dressing:

1/2 cup raw tahini

1/4 cup nama shoyu

1/8 cup grated ginger

1/8 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice

6 tablespoons raw agave nectar

2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil

1 teaspoon crushed garlic

water, as needed

Salad:

1 lb. peeled broccoli stems, julienned

1/4 head Asian cabbage, shredded into long sheets

4 carrots. finely julienned

1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced

1/2 cup scallions, sliced thin

To Make:

Combine dressing ingredients in a blender and puree. Use water as neccessary to bring to a consistency of thin mayonaisse.

Toss dressing with remaining ingredients and serve.

SERVES 6-8.