Who says healthy food has to be boring or bland? This salad has fresh kale, tender roasted sweet potato pieces, cashews, and parmesan shavings, all tossed in a zesty lemon-parmesan dressing!
Y'all, school starts again today and I am so sad about it. Booooo-freakin-hoo. I mean, I know I can't complain because I'm at my dream program at my dream school but also... school is hard and I like sleeping and making cake. Okay? Okay. To cheer you {myself} up, I whipped up this super healthy salad that just happens to be absolutely delicious! This Roasted Sweet Potato Kale Salad is tossed with a fresh and zesty lemon-parmesan dressing, and topped with more shaved parmesan and salty cashews. Good for you, and good enough to beat the Monday blues!
For awhile, I've had the idea of making some sort of hearty salad for everyone's January resolutions, and I really wanted to use some winter produce! The hardest part of eating healthy in the winter is that fruits and veggies are lacking and can be totally uninspiring. I decided to grab the humble kale and sweet potato, both clean eating staples, and try to make them exciting! Kale chips are so 2011, so I went with raw kale and roasted the sweet potato instead. The fresh, robust kale with the melt-in-your-mouth yams is already a perfect match, but of course I had to add a little something more!
Being Italian, obviously I think Parmesan cheese should go in everything. And I mean, I'm right, but that's besides the point. ANYWAY, I had the base for this kale salad, but I felt like I needed to add another little something special. I consulted my trusty vegan best friend and she suggested cashews of all things. I thought it was weird but, well, I trust the vegan when it comes to vegetables. And she didn't lead me astray! They seem totally random, but the cashews add a little extra crunch and something-something that keeps you coming back.
I know kale salad is so typical January-diet-food, but I promise it's actually so delicious! Healthy food that doesn't taste healthy is the best 😉 Happy cooking!
Looking for more salads? Check out my Garlic Shrimp Caesar Salad, Grilled Chicken & Fruit Cobb Salad, and my BLT Pasta Salad with Avocado Dressing!
roasted sweet potato kale salad
Ingredients
- 6-8 cups kale leaves
- 1 large sweet potato
- 1-2 tablespoon coconut oil melted
- 1 teaspoon Italian herb seasoning
- ⅓ cup roasted salted cashews
- ¼ cup freshly shaved parmesan
- *for the dressing*
- juice of ½ lemon about ¼ cup
- ¼ cup grated parmesan
- ½ cup olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425F, and line a baking sheet with foil.
- Wash your sweet potato, peel if desired, and cut into small cubes.
- Toss with the melted coconut oil and Italian herb seasoning, and spread out in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet. Roast for 25-30 minutes, until crisp and golden brown on the outside and soft on the inside.
- Next, prepare the kale. Remove the leaves from the hard stems, tear the leaves into pieces, and rinse thoroughly. Optionally, you can also "massage" the kale as you wash it, which helps break down some of the tough fibers and makes it a little more tender! To do that, just squeeze the kale leaves while they're soaking in the water. Super easy!
- Once kale is washed, be sure to dry it very well, as it tends to hold a lot of water.
- In the bottom of a serving bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, parmesan, and spices for the dressing. Mix in the kale, and toss lightly. Top salad with sweet potato pieces, shaved parmesan, and sweet potato. Serve immediately!
cakespy says
I love sweet potatoes. I love kale. This looks like the best salad ever!! Love that you have nuts on it too.
valentina says
Thank you friend! It's such a modge-podge of health food but somehow the combination just works!
Adina says
I am so much into sweet potatoes, nowadays more than ever, I always have some in my pantry. I would love to try this salad, it sounds really delicious.
valentina says
This is such a great way to eat sweet potatoes! If you already love them, I'm sure you will love this salad Adina 🙂
Evi @ greenevi says
Such a pretty salad! You've combined here all my favourite ingredients, I love it 🙂
valentina says
Thanks Evi! They're some of my favorites, too! 😉
Bindia | Indisk Takeaway says
I love the method, salad looks beautiful. As soon as possible wanna taste it. Thanks for sharing this try it soon.
valentina says
Thank you so much! I hope you enjoy! 🙂
Tracy | Baking Mischief says
This salad looks so good! And I love that it looks like the type of salad that would absolutely fill you up. Sorry it's back to school time. I hope you packed this salad for lunch and made all your classmates jealous. 😉
valentina says
Thanks Tracy! I think I'll have to make this salad again just so I can bring it to school and show it off! 😉