Beet and Parsnip Salad with Pineapple Vinaigrette

Day 46: This dish blows my mind. How can it taste so good? After all, we are talking raw beets and parsnips. Oy!

Yes, this is a variation of a slaw I made earlier but THIS is the correct way to do it. It is from Veganomicon by Isa Chandra Moskowitz & Terry Hope Romero. I halved all of the ingredients. I didn’t trust enough folks in our household would like it. How wrong was I? Even the baby loves it.
Ingredients:

Dressing:
2 cups pineapple juice
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 grapeseed oil
2 Tbs maple syrup or agave nectar (Personally, I think the pineapple juice makes it sweet enough, but it depends on the juice, I guess)
1 clove garlic, grated with a microplane grater or very well minced (I used my press, this time, but the microplane makes it juicier and less clumpy)
1/4 Tsp salt

Salad:
1 lb beets, washed, topped & tailed, grated
1 lb parsnips, the same
1/2 cup mint leaves, chopped finely.