I have to say I was pretty excited to make this week’s French Fridays with Dorie recipe – Café style grated carrot salad (p 107 or carottes râpées as they are known in France). It’s a classic salad, often served in café as the name suggests, but it’s also something that you can easily find in most supermarkets or traiteurs and which occupies a pretty much permanent position in my fridge when I am in France.
It’s a pretty easy recipe (well apart from the grating of the carrots, a bit of a pain) – carrots, mustard, honey, vinegar, oil, raisins, walnuts and parsley – but the dish completely took me back to my little Paris kitchen circa 1998 when I used to work at the British Council and would routinely arrive home around 8pm. Not wishing to cook a meal for one at that late hour, I would often have a bowl of carottes rapées with some baguette and a glass of wine. Dinner of champions and English teachers everywhere! In fact, just last month, I had that for dinner one night, being too lazy to cook after being in the kitchen all day at La Cuisine Paris.
It’s honestly so easy I don’t know why I haven’t made this more often. I guess the carrot grating is the off-putting factor.
But yesterday as I ate this, standing outside with my camera still slung over my shoulder, I figured the hassle of the grating was worth it.
And I vowed to make it again. Very soon. So I can close my eyes and pretend I am in France…
French Fridays with Dorie participants do not publish the recipes on our blogs (though you are in luck this week – you can find the recipe on Dorie’s site!), rather, we prefer if you purchase Around My French Table for yourselves (trust me, you definitely want this book!) which you can do here on Amazon or Amazon Canada. Or for free worldwide shipping, buy from The Book Depository. Go on, treat yourself – join us! I have not missed a week since October 2010 and the recipes that I didn’t like I can count on one hand.
Hmmm – if I could close my eyes and conjure up images of France, I think I would be more in love with this salad too 🙂
My quick meal consists of a chopped up cucumber and pretzels – slightly less elegant, no?
Cucumber and pretzels would be mighty fine too!
I agree, if eating this salad with my eyes closed sends me to Paris, I´m in! I really liked it. Have a great weekend!
Was good huh?
I’ll do the grating. 🙂
Actually, whilst on MY own all summer, there were more than a few nights where I did not wish to cook a big meal for one, so sat down to similar. Though for me the salad was more often replaced with a trio of fine cheeses…
Fine, next time you can do the grating all by yourself 😉
This is one of my favourite salads, though I haven’t tried Dorie’s take on it yet… I obviously should, though, because it looks lovely! I sometimes make it with grated beets, too, depending on my mood.
PS – Call me lazy, but I don’t even bother busting out the box grater if there’s more than one carrot involved. The grater attachment on my food processor is pretty much my bestest friend in those circumstances. 🙂
Yeah I am not sure mine will do them that fine… Need to try it again.
It doesn’t have to be the fancy or the exotic which can transport us to the other side of the world or to a different time, food is amazing stuff. It’s my mother’s dog’s favourite too. 😉
Really? !
Yum! My mom used to make a salad like this when I was younger, and I had completely forgotten about it. I think I will have to make a nice batch of this over the weekend since it will be a healthy snack or lunch!
It’s a great thing to make in a big batch!
Looks beautiful and your photos are stellar. Wow..you haven’t missed a week. I sort of dropped the ball when we ran into a rash of recipes that wouldn’t go over well here with my family but that said, I should have jumped back in long long ago. Trying to do so now…will do rewinds on weeks I don’t think the recipe will float here. Really want to make more use of this book as I love Dorie’s recipes…was in the original TWD baking group all but 4 months…took me that long to find out about it! Hope you have a great weekend.
Dorie’s recipes are, indeed fabulous!
Gorgeous, Mardi! 🙂
Merci!
Looks fabulous! I’m adding the nuts next time — and lots of golden raisins, like yours. Enjoyed my side trip to La Cuisine Paris too — very fun. Bye for now.
The nuts and raisins work really well together!
I grate carrots in my garden salads all the time but me er once thought to make a carrot salad! Thanks so much for the idea and for the wonderful looking recipe and photos.
It’s a bit of a hidden gem, this salad, unless you have lived in France. I love it!
Ahhhhh carottes râpées…brings back memories of French supermarkets 🙂 Dorie’s version sounds way better!
Indeed it is!
I went the lazy route and the food processor grated the carrots in the blink of an eye. Your salad looks lovely. I like the French name for it better than “carrot salad”. Sounds much more elegant.
I am not sure my food processor grates carrots that fine?
If eating this salad could save me the plane ticket, I’m in. However, I was not too fond of it, so Tricia and I had to go the old fashioned way of purchasing ours tickets for our trip in October
Your salad looks great, and when Tricia gave us a sample of her version, it was great. Lovely
photos.
.
You are going to have a great trip!