Catalina Carrots

 There is a very old recipe which has cycled in and out of popularity over the years called Copper Pennies. It is a salad made with thinly sliced carrots (pennies) along with onion and bell pepper and dressed with a sweet and tangy tomatoey dressing.

Most recipes I have seen for Copper Pennies use canned tomato soup along with a LOT of sugar and the carrots are literally swimming in dressing.

This recipe is reminiscent of that but I have taken a slight curve from the original. I used carrots only and dressed them lightly in a homemade Catalina dressing. I loved Catalina dressing as a kid and recently discovered after not eating it for years that I still love it.

Pritchard Parker came home from one of his thrift shop adventures with a small crinkle cutter so I decided to try it out. I cut a few slices before I thought to myself, "Since you are going to steam these carrots anyway, wouldn't be easier to cut them afterwards?" 

I put 4 large carrots in the microwave for 4 minutes only and they were as tender as I wanted them. And yes indeed, they were much easier to slice with the rather dull cutter. After they are steamed and sliced, dress them lightly in Catalina dressing.  If you have time, chill before serving.

Catalina Dressing
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup catsup
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup canola oil
1 small onion, grated

Combine all ingredients in a jar. Shake until well blended.

This dressing is good on all lettuce salads and also delicious on a turkey and Swiss cheese sandwich.