I’m trying to eat more raw vegetables because I think they’re probably good for us. I know I won’t eat them, however, unless they include something very yummy (like cheese). Fortunately, I had little pieces of several different kinds of cheese.
I was looking for interesting salads and this one caught my eye. I looked up Brussels sprouts and according to Wikipedia, they are, indeed, very healthy.* I didn’t realize you can eat them raw, so I decided to try it.
The recipe I used comes from the Chick in the Kitchen website. It’s simple to make if you know how to use the attachments on your food processor (which I did not until now). After I figured out how to shave the Brussels sprouts and shred the cheese, it only took a few minutes to make.
Shaved brussels sprouts
There is one great feature of this salad which I really appreciate – you can add the dressing and store it that way because the Brussels sprouts hold up indefinitely. (My theory is that if the salad is all ready for me to eat, I am more likely to choose it over a (less healthy) option.)
Raw Brussels Sprouts Salad with Walnuts & Gruyere
From Chick in the Kitchen
(There is also a good version of this at Shutterbean with lots of pictures – Addictive Brussels Sprouts Salad and she credits Gluten-Free Girl with her Brussels Sprouts Salad.)
1 10-oz. container of fresh Brussel sprouts, trimmed
3-4 oz. shredded Gruyere cheese (check out our recipe for Gruyere)
1/2 c. chopped walnuts, toasted & cooled (otherwise they’ll melt the cheese)
2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
4 Tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. whole grain mustard
1 tsp. honey
salt and pepper to taste
Using the slicing disc on your food processor, feed the whole Brussels sprouts into the machine until they are shredded. Switch to the shredding blade to prepare the Gruyere. Toss the sprouts, cheese, and toasted walnuts in a medium bowl and set aside.
To prepare the dressing, whisk vinegar, olive oil, mustard and honey together. Pour over the salad and toss. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
With kale, peppers and cucumbers at beachbody.com
Variations:
The salad was good, but the Brussels sprouts remained a little on the dry, crunchy side. After the first bite, I got used to it but I began to think of ways to improve the salad. I found a lot of other salads, so I did a little survey of the variations:
- Squeeze the juice of a lemon over the Brussels sprouts and add olive oil before you add pecorino (instead of Gruyere) – Shredded Raw Brussel Sprouts with Pecorino, Lemon and Olive Oil and Shaved Brussels Sprout Salad with Fresh Walnuts and Pecorino
- Instead of the walnuts, add dried blueberries, dried cranberries and smoked almonds. Top with shaved manchego – Brussel Sprout Salad
- Add dried cranberries, sliced almonds, sunflower seed kernels, and shelled raw pumpkin seeds – Chopped Brussels Sprout Salad
- Only 3 ingredients- Brussels sprouts, bacon and avocado – Shredded Raw Brussels Sprout Salad with Bacon and Avocado
- With sliced apples, shallots, serrano chiles and mint in a sesame seed vineaigrette – Brussels Sprout Salad with Toasted Sesame Vinaigrette
- With kale, chopped almonds and pecorino – Kale and Brussels Sprout Salad
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