Today it is a gorgeous and sunny day here in Melbourne and I wanted to share this really lovely raw salad with you all.

This week, I taught a nourishing salads cooking class at Relish Mama (if you missed it, some new dates have just been added here) This particular recipe was not on the class menu but it has graced our family table on many occasions. It is from the cookbook Relish Mama family. We enjoyed it just last night for a large family birthday gathering at home. It was the perfect addition to our Mexican fiesta. You just might find it will work wonders on your Christmas table too. I hope you love it as much as we do.

Nellie

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Raw cabbage, fennel and apple salad

Serves 4–6

This salad is the perfect accompaniment to luscious curries and slow-cooked meat dishes.

For shaved salads such as this one, I highly recommend you use a Japanese mandolin. They make salads like this so easy. Just a word of warning though: they are incredibly sharp!

Dressing

¼ cup sour cream or buttermilk

¼ cup natural yoghurt

2 tablespoons fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

2 teaspoons wholegrain mustard

Sea salt

Freshly cracked black pepper

Salad

1 fennel bulb, finely sliced

¼ red cabbage, finely sliced

¼ white cabbage, finely sliced

4 spring onions, using both white and green parts, finely sliced on an angle

1 Granny Smith apple, julienne

1 handful mint leaves, washed, dried and roughly torn

1 handful parsley leaves, washed, dried and roughly torn

1 tablespoon baby capers (I prefer the ones in salt), rinsed

2 tablespoons pecans or walnuts, roasted and roughly chopped

For the dressing, in a medium bowl or jar with a lid, add all dressing ingredients and whisk (or shake with lid on) to combine. Cover and chill 1 hour or overnight.

Place the fennel, cabbage, spring onions, apple, herbs and capers into a bowl. Mix gently with your hands to combine.

Use as much of the dressing as is required to coat the salad. Pile into a large serving bowl and sprinkle over the toasted nuts.

Any leftover dressing will keep refrigerated for up to 5 days.