Ditch the claggy mayo and blend up roasted sunflower seeds with some ranch flavours for a healthful coleslaw. I recommend that you take the time to de-gorge the cabbage shreds before making the coleslaw, but it isn't absolutely necessary, especially if it will be be eaten on the day of making. See note at the end if you wish to de-gorge the cabbage.
- 100 g shelled, raw sunflower seeds
- 1 banana shallot / eschallot peeled and roughly chopped; or half small onion
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1/2 tsp celery seeds optional
- 1 clove garlic smashed and peeled
- 2 tbsp lemon or lime juice
- 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 400 g cabbage washed; mix of red and green is nice
- 150 g carrots washed and trimmed
- 1 tbsp chopped fresh chives
- 30 g chopped fresh parsley
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Preheat the oven to 160C fan/180C/350F. Pour the sunflower seeds onto a baking tray and roast them for 10 minutes.
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Pop the hot seeds into the blender along with enough just-boiled water to cover, plus an extra inch. Let the seeds soak fo 15 minutes to half an hour. This is to soften the seeds and plump them up for a creamy sauce. You can do this overnight if you wish.
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While the seeds are soaking, slice the vegetables.** Use a heavy knife or mandoline to shred the cabbage into fine slices; grate the carrots on the coarse side of a box grater. Pop the vegetables plus the chives and parsley into a large mixing bowl.
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After 15 minutes or so, blend the sunflower seed mix with the shallot/onion, Dijon mustard, celery seeds, smashed garlic, lemon juice and apple cider vinegar. Blend until creamy, adding a little more water if needed. Taste and adjust. You may want a bit of sweetness, but remember that the carrots will be quite sweet.
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Scrape the sunflower-ranch dressing over the coleslaw vegetables and mix well. I use my hands and really squish it in. If you want it even creamier, add a touch of yogurt, mayo or kefir.
Make this ahead: keep the shredded vegetables and herbs in a separate container to the sunflower-ranch dressing and mix when needed. Both will keep well separately for two day. See the note below
The best way to enjoy this is by adding one more step: de-gorging. This entails shredding the cabbages and tossing them with a tablespoon of salt and letting it all drain in a colander for at least half an hour - up to 2 hours. This will make your coleslaw much much crisper and keep for longer without "weeping". No need to rinse as the salt mostly drains away with the liquid. If you are wanting to keep the made-up coleslaw for a day or two, I would very much recommend you do this step for ANY coleslaw that you make.