I work as a personal chef in Santa Cruz County, California, definitely one of the most beautiful places to live. I know a fair amount about nutrition. I support eating organically and locally grown and produced foods. I will be sharing musings about all of these things.

I will start things off with a simple recipe that has been deeply satisfying to me lately. I have been eating it almost daily for weeks, in fact, with slight variations.

Fresh Carrot/Beet salad

1 large raw beet, any color, cleaned, grated

1 large raw carrot, grated

1/4 yellow or red onion, grated

3 in. piece daikon radish, grated

This recipe is definitely one for which a food processor comes in handy. Toss the grated vegetables with salt and pepper to taste, 1 T good olive oil and a squeeze of lemon juice. I like to add a tsp. of celery seed as well. This is good by itself, on top of romaine lettuce leaves, inside a tortilla.

So, why eat this salad ? First, all of these ingredients are in season, now, here in California, and across most of the U.S. Secondly, adding raw foods into our diet is a really good idea, especially in the summer. Fresh raw vegetables retain a larger percentage of their nutrients. Thirdly, beets are a nutritional powerhouse, full of minerals such as calcium and iron, Vitamins C and many of the Bs, and long used as a blood tonic and detoxifier. Plus, they taste good. They and the carrot are naturally sweet. Carrots also have B vitamins, and calcium. Daikon radish adds a bitter note, good for the digestion and is valued in folk medicine as a decongestant.

Cooking, like life is about creativity so make this recipe your own. Add something to it. Nourish yourself with healthy food and with the love that comes from the earth.