Serve this light, vibrant carrot, mango and fresh herb salad with a date dressing for a simple lunch or side dish. For the date dressing, I used Persian-style Feta, which is made from cow's milk, but you can replace with Greek variety, which is made from sheep's and goat's milk. Make a huge batch of this healthy salad to keep in the fridge as it makes the perfect accompaniment to your grill feast, but sprinkle the nuts over the salad right before serving, so they will stay crispy. Kaloute / kalute / kali dates are a type of fresh dates or wet dates with a soft meaty texture in Iran, similar to fresh mazafati dates. They're not strictly "fresh" as they have dried a little and darkened on the skin. The dried dates are great for the dressing too, but soak them first in hot water before mixing with other ingredients.
SaladDressing
600 g Carrots, peeled and grated or shredded
A large handful of flat parsley or coriander, chopped
1 Sweet ripe mango, peeled and sliced
A handful of hazelnuts, toasted and crushed
60 ml Extra-virgin olive oil
40 g Feta (Persian or Greek)
6-10 Fresh kaloote dates, seeds removed (or dried one, soaked in hot water)
50 ml Water (using hot water if using dried dates)
1 tbsp Balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp Pomegranate molasses
To make the dressing, combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor and blitz to a jam-like consist...
