Winter Kale and Sweet Potato Salad with Orange Tahini Dressing
A simple and beautiful salad for the holidays. This healthy winter salad features kale, sweet potato, and grilled onions and is tossed in a creamy orange tahini dressing. Serve it warm for the perfect cozy meal! It’s hearty, delicious, and healthy all wrapped into one.
This salad is full of fresh ingredients and is bursting with flavor. Kale brings a crunchy and crisp texture and the sweet potato makes this salad hearty. The star of this recipe is the simple and homemade lemon tahini dressing which pairs well with this veggie-loaded salad.
Is it just me or do you feel healthier just looking at kale? Haha. No, but really, kale is on the superfood list. I love using kale in my salads any chance I can get.
Kale is loaded with vitamins A, B, C, and K as well as folate, omega-3 fatty acids, and minerals. The nutrients in kale help to lower cholesterol, prevent cancer, and lose weight by filling you up with high water content.
Why You Will Love This Easy and Healthy Kale Salad
-It’s colorful, bright, and packed with a variety of vegetables. You will feel great after eating a few servings of vegetables in this salad. With kale, onion. and sweet potato, this salad is a super food choice for lunch or dinner.
-It can be stored for leftovers or made ahead of time. Unlike other green leaf salads, this salad won’t get soggy if you place it into the fridge for the next day. We can thank kale for that.
-It’s an addictive salad, it is that good. There’s no way you will only have one serving, put it that way. I crave this salad all winter long and I am sure you will, too.
-It’s a hearty kale salad. So filling that you can definitely eat a serving as your meal and be full afterward. That’s my type of salad.
The Ingredient List
Kale-Don’t let kale’s looks fool you. The secret is massaging the kale in olive oil, salt, and pepper to soften the leaves a bit.
Sweet potato-This ingredient is really what makes this dish a hearty one. There’s nothing like roasted sweet potato during the cold seasons.
Farro-One of my favorite grains, this ingredient adds so much flavor and texture to the salad. It definitely helps make this a hearty and complete meal.
Onion-Adding sweet grilled onion is one of my favorite additions to this salad. It brings a sweet touch to each bite and I really love it.
Pecans-Let’s talk about crunch. Thanks to these healthy little nuts, we now have even more protein with each bite and a nice little crunch to this salad.
Golden raisins-Step aside because regular raisins are out. These sweet, golden raisins are the perfect finisher for this delicious kale salad.
Lemon Tahini Dressing-One of my favorite winter dressings and it is easy to make. The ingredients are tahini, dijon mustard, apple cider vinegar, fresh minced garlic, zest and juice from an orange, and maple syrup. Yum!
How to Make Winter Kale and Sweet Potato Salad
Step one: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
Step two: Peel and chop the sweet potatoes into small, 1/2-inch cubes. Set the chunks onto the sheet pan, drizzle with avocado oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss everything until the chunks are all coasted and smooth them out into one even layer. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Feel free to toss the potatoes around the 8-minute mark.
Step three: While the sweet potatoes are cooking, make the orange tahini dressing. Place all of the ingredients into a small bowl. Using a whisk, mix the dressing well until it is smooth and creamy.
Step four: Cook the farro by following the package instructions over the stove.
Step five: Peel and slice the onion. Preheat the frying pan with avocado oil. Reduce the heat to low-medium and place the onion into the pan. Cook the onion, slowly, for about 5 minutes or until they are slightly caramelized.
Step six: Let’s assemble the salad! Start with a bed of kale in a bowl. Drizzle the kale with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Using your hands, massage the kale until the leaves become slightly softened. Next, add farro, sweet potato, grilled onion, chopped pecans, and golden raisins. Last, drizzle the orange tahini dressing over the top and toss it all up.
Serve immediately for a warm salad or place the ingredients into the fridge and assemble the salad cold when you are ready to eat.
Tips + Modifications
Short on time? Place the sliced onion onto the pan with the sweet potato chunks and cook them in the oven (instead of separately on the stove).
This salad can be served in one large bowl or individual servings.
Did You Enjoy This Salad?
How did you like this salad? So good, right? However you feel, make sure to give it a star rating below and comment on your experience. I love hearing all about it! Thanks!
And, check out these other kale salads!
Winter Kale and Sweet Potato Salad with Orange Tahini Dressing
Equipment
- 1 lined, sheet pan
- 1 saucepan
- 1 large bowl
Ingredients
- 2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into small, 1/2-inch cubes
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil *For the sweet potatoes
- 1 teaspoon salt *For the sweet potatoes
- ½ teaspoon ground pepper *For the sweet potatoes
- 1 cup dry farro
- 1 large red or yellow onion, thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil *For the onions
- 1 teaspoon salt *For the onions
- 2 cups shredded kale, stems removed
- 1 teaspoon avocado oil *For the kale
- ½ cup chopped, raw pecans
- ⅓ cup golden raisins
For the Orange Tahini Dressing:
- ½ cup tahini
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 teaspoons pure maple syrup
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- zest from ½ of an orange
- juice from ½ of an orange *about 2 tablespoons
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
- Peel and chop the sweet potatoes into small, 1/2-inch cubes. Set the chunks onto the sheet pan, drizzle with avocado oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss everything until the chunks are all coasted and smooth them out into one even layer. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Feel free to toss the potatoes around the 8-minute mark.
- While the sweet potatoes are cooking, make the orange tahini dressing. Place all of the ingredients into a small bowl. Using a whisk, mix the dressing well until it is smooth and creamy.
- Cook the farro by following the package instructions over the stove.
- Peel and slice the onion. Preheat the frying pan with avocado oil. Reduce the heat to low-medium and place the onion into the pan. Cook the onion, slowly, for about 5 minutes or until they are slightly caramelized.
- Let's assemble the salad! Start with a bed of kale in a bowl. Drizzle the kale with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Using your hands, massage the kale until the leaves become slightly softened. Next, add farro, sweet potato, grilled onion, chopped pecans, and golden raisins. Last, drizzle the orange tahini dressing over the top and toss it all up.
- Serve immediately for a warm salad or place the ingredients into the fridge and assemble the salad cold when you are ready to eat.
Notes
Nutrition
Enjoy!
XOXO
Michelle