I love salads, especially those that combine roasted and raw vegetables. This salad has a couple of highlights, roasted orange sweet potatoes and red and white candy-striped beets. These pretty candy-striped beets have a milder taste than regular beets and best of all don’t stain your hands when you peel and cut them. I found them at Woolworths and used the full bunch in this salad. Next up juicy pomegranates, which are in season and lastly, possibly the highlight of the salad – sweet and spicy pecans. They come from Trader Joes and are in my opinion one of the best things you can get there, certainly in their nut section. I have my sister bring me some whenever she visits South Africa, because they’re that good and I have yet to find anything here that is similar. If you ever find yourself near a Trader Joes I highly recommend getting them. Amazon also sells them here (and ships to South Africa). You can use plain roasted pecans or any other type of nuts. If you want me to make a copycat sweet and spicy nut recipe, let me know in the comments below.
If you like a thicker coating of dressing, double up the mustard vinaigrette, as I generally keep my salads very lightly dressed.
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servings
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- 2 orange sweet potatoes
- 1 bunch candy striped beets
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 4 C Kale roughly chopped
- 1 avocado
- 1 pomegranate
- 1/4 C olive oil
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1/2 tsp crushed garlic
- 1/4 tsp red chilli flakes
- salt and pepper to taste
Ingredients
Mustard Vinaigrette
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- Preheat the oven to 200°C
- Peel the sweet potato and cut into 2cm slices. Then cut each slice into quarters.
- Peel the candy striped beets and cut into wedges (4 or 8 wedges depending on the size of the beet).
- Place the sweet potato and beets onto a baking sheet and drizzle about a tablespoon of olive oil and a dash of salt and pepper. Toss to coat. When coated, makes sure the sweet potatoes and beets are in an even layer, with minimal overlapping – this helps them cook more evenly.
- Cook for 25-35 minutes, until the sweet potato and beets are cooked through and slightly browning at the edges. Remove and set aside.
- While the veggies are roasting, add the kale to a large mixing bowl. Drizzle some dressing over the kale and massage it in. Let it sit. This helps soften the kale and makes it easier to eat.
- Seed the pomegranate and add to the Kale.
- Peel, pit and slice the avocado and add it to the kale.
- Add the sweet potato and candy striped beets to the bowl, pour over the remaining dressing and toss well. Sprinkle with the pecans.
- To make the vinaigrette, add all ingredients to a bowl and whisk until combined.
I’ll be making this for tonight. Off for dinner at my mom’s with friends and this salad will be perfect. I’ll just use regular pecans and I’ll toast them myself. Maybe a dash of toasted sunflower and sesame seeds. I don’t have pomegranate. Maybe a bit of crunchy apple? Thank you for the inspiration. I was needing a new and crunchy salad combo. Your dressing looks like a winner.
Those additions sound yum! Yes apples if you want a crunch, dried cranberries if you want added sweetness! Enjoy 🙂