Whole30 Carrot Raisin Salad (Vegan, Paleo)

This Whole30 carrot raisin salad is lightly and naturally sweetened, creamy, and full of tender carrots and plump raisins. The perfect make-ahead side dish for easy lunches, picnics, or dinners, you’ll love this recipe all of spring and summer! This Whole30 carrot raisin salad is also paleo and vegan, making it a healthy way to get more raw carrots (and flavor!) in your diet. 

Did you know Chick-Fil-A doesn’t sell their carrot and raisin salad anymore? 

I found out the hard way… I rolled through the drive-thru when I was early pregnant and nuggets and a frosted lemonade were the only foods I could fathom eating at the moment. Fries sounded gross, so I asked for as big of a carrot and raisin salad they could give me. Except…

They don’t make it anymore!

That carrot and raisin salad was a favorite of mine as a kid, veggies I’d willingly eat, a side dish I didn’t mind instead of waffle fries. And, as far as I was concerned, a Chick-Fil-A staple. What gives?

Eh, it doesn’t matter so much, though. Because this Whole30 carrot raisin salad comes together in just minutes and is light and filling and creamy and naturally sweetened and the raisins are plump and oh it’s so easy to keep in the fridge and dish out for a last-minute side dish. 

I came up with this recipe during a time when I’d been researching the estrogen-metabolizing benefits of raw carrots. You may or may not know, but excess estrogens found in so many elements of our environment, from our food (Commercially-raised meats positively pumped full of hormones and chemicals, as well as the abundance of soy in our diet; soy contains phytoestrogens, which both mimic and act as antagonists to estrogen), polluted water (Yep, I’m talking about the stuff coming from your tap), unsafe beauty products (Hello, parabens, phenoxyethanol, and phthalates), and plastics. This absolute overwhelm of estrogen and estrogen-mimicking substances has thrown many (many many) of us out of balance, leading to us becoming estrogen dominant. 

For women, our cycle is generally split into two phases, each phase controlled by a different hormone. The beginning phase, or the follicular phase, is dominated by estrogen. You ovulate, then the time between ovulation and your period is called the luteal phase and is dominated by progesterone. When your body has way, way too much estrogen for your progesterone to balance, you can become estrogen dominant. Sounds kinda eh in theory, but can lead to serious symptoms such as weight gain or weight loss resistance, primarily in the hips, waist, and thighs; menstrual problems and PMS (Yep… PMS doesn’t really have to always be a thing); fibrocystic breasts or uterine fibroids; depression and/or anxiety; low sex drive; and fatigue. Um… pass on all that.

So when we were getting ready to start trying for this baby, I made a massive effort to bring my hormones into balance by removing phyto- and xenoestrogens from my diet and detoxing excess estrogen. I cleaned out my makeup drawer and replaced everything with safer skincare from Beautycounter (<< click to check out their badass makeup and skincare – for kids and baby, too!); I purged all endocrine disruptors this way and almost instantly noticed a difference in my cycle (Specifically a longer luteal phase – a sign of better balanced hormones!).

I started taking DIM, a supplement that’s a phytochemical derived from the digestion of cruciferous veggies, which is known for its estrogen-metabolizing benefits. 

And I started eating raw carrots. Uh, what?

Weirdly enough, raw carrots (Real adult carrots, not baby carrots, unfortunately) contain a unique fiber that help metabolize estrogen and remove it from the body. I tried cutting one up and eating it with whatever dip I had around the house each day, but I’d forget, it felt like work, and I just really got sick of raw, crunchy carrots at every lunch. Then it occurred to me: Whole30 carrot raisin salad.

This Whole30 carrot raisin salad tastes just like the stuff I ate growing up but is totally free of added sugars, weird vegetable oils, and soul-crushing styrofoam containers. Instead, it’s made with just four ingredients and keeps beautifully in the fridge, making it an easy, lovely side dish for any meal and an awesome way to get your daily carrot in!

I used my food processor to shred my carrots, which means this Whole30 carrot raisin salad came together in seriously just a few minutes. You could shred them by hand, as well, but I absolutely recommend investing in a food processor, especially if you’re committed to cooking healthy food at home. You’ll use it almost daily, I promise!

You’ll love this Whole30 carrot raisin salad for lunches, picnics, and a quick dinner side dish! It’s creamy and naturally a tiny bit sweet with tender carrots and plump raisins. So good.

And psst… this Whole30 carrot raisin salad goes perfectly with my Whole30 chicken nuggets – Chick-Fil-A style!

5 from 1 vote

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Whole30 Carrot and Raisin Salad (Paleo, Vegan)

This Whole30 carrot and raisin salad is lightly and naturally sweetened, creamy, and full of tender carrots and plump raisins. The perfect make-ahead side dish for easy lunches, picnics, or dinners, you'll love this recipe all of spring and summer! This Whole30 carrot and raisin salad is also paleo and vegan, making it a healthy way to get more raw carrots (and flavor!) in your diet.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American, Paleo, Vegan, Whole30

Prep Time 1 hour 5 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes

Servings 5 cups

Ingredients

• 8 carrots shredded (See note)
• 1 8- ounce can crushed pineapple in juice drained
• 1 cup raisins Whole30 compliant
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise use a vegan mayonnaise for vegan
• pinch salt

Instructions

1. Combine all ingredients and chill for one hour.

Recipe Notes

I recommend using a food processor, fitted with the shredded blade, to shred the carrots. Major time saver!