Kids Cook Monday: Shredded Carrot, Beet, and Apple Slaw Recipe

My boys and I have been having a blast making weekly meals for The Kids Cook Monday campaign. We've had the opportunity to spend some quality time together and the best part is we get to eat & enjoy whatever we happen to be preparing in the kitchen. Cooking with kids also offers great educational opportunities and teaching moments for both of you.

One of the things my boys really enjoy doing is using small kitchen appliances. We use the food processor a lot and they take pleasure in seeing how quickly a whole raw vegetable or block of cheese can become quickly shredded. So, they were quite pleased when I told them we were going to prepare a raw vegetarian slaw for this weeks hub.

This raw vegetarian slaw is sweet and nutritious. Serve it by itself as a tasty side dish, on a bed of spinach for a delicious salad or bring it along on your next potluck to share with family and friends.

This dish can be prepared in less than 20 minutes (possibly longer with children helping). It is a raw food recipe and requires 0 cooking time.

• 1 large beet
• ~ 12 medium carrots
• 2 apples
• 1/2 Poppyseed dressing (for raw food diet try, Raw Salad Dressing: Oil-Free Orange Vinaigrette)
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• spinach (optional)
• raw almonds (optional)

My children have felt very proud after preparing a dish to share. Today we took the time to present our creation more formally.

Nice looking dishes are more visually appetizing and that is sometimes enough of a nudge to get children to try food they may not otherwise be interested in.

For today's dish, we used a glass truffle dish. Then we layered baby spinach along the bottom and topped it with the veggie slaw. We decorated the top with several almond flowers by using 5 almonds to form each petal of a flower.

I think my boys were extra proud this week when showing off the meal to their dad and then we all enjoyed eating it together.

• Wash beets, carrots, & apple
• Cut ends off carrots, but no need to peel
• If needed, cut fruit & vegetables so they are small enough to fit into the food processor
• Mix shredded beet, carrots, & apples in medium bowl
• Add 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• Pour in 1/2 cup salad dressing
• Toss with fork or salad tongs
• Serve alone or on a bed of greens
• Enjoy!

• Children should always be closely supervised in the kitchen, especially while using appliances to help prevent injuries
• Remind children the kitchen is not a place to play
• Be sure to demonstrate how to use a kitchen tool before letting kids do it themselves

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