Rainbow Cabbage Salad with Tahini-Lemon Dressing

By Mayim Bialik February 18, 2014

This colorful salad is delicious as a main course or side dish. The nutritional punch of colors makes it full of beta-carotene, calcium, and a bevy of vitamins. Arrange the ingredients alongside one another and drizzle with the dressing, or mix them all together for a mixed-up delicious rainbow of a salad.

Serves 4

3 tablespoons toasted sesame or sunflower seeds
6 cups red cabbage, roughly chopped (about 1/4 large cabbage)
1 large carrot, peeled then shaved (using the peeler) into 2-3 inch strips
3 celery stalks, leaves removed, chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
2 handfuls of fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
tahini-lemon dressing
4 ounces tahini
1 garlic clove
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Pinch of cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 325 F. Using a rimmed baking sheet, toast the seeds for 8 to 10 minutes, watching closely. You can also use a toaster oven until the seeds start to darken, or sauté them without oil in a small pan until they brown and become fragrant, about 5 minutes. Remove and set aside.

Boil 8 cups of water while you chop the cabbage. Slice cabbage in half through the stem. Slice each half in half again and chop roughly. Place the chopped cabbage into a strainer over your sink and pour the boiling water over it. Rinse quickly with cold water. Dry the cabbage roughly with a (dark-colored) hand towel or in a salad spinner.

In a large bowl, mix together the celery, pepper, cabbage, shaved carrot, and parsley.

Place all the dressing ingredients in a blender. Add enough water to make a dressing consistency. Add the dressing to the cabbage salad just before serving.

From Mayim’s Vegan Table: More Than 100 Great-Tasting and Healthy Recipes from My Family to Yours by Mayim Bialik with Dr. Jay Gordon. Reprinted courtesy of Da Capo Lifelong Books.

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