Winter Chop Salad with Pomegranates, Toasted Walnuts, and Sweet Potatoes
Typically a chop salad is full of salami, cheeses, and other decadent ingredients. This chop salad is full of flavor, but actually vegan! It’s perfect for entertaining when you are serving lots of people with different dietary needs. The walnuts and sweet potatoes can be cooked in advance in the oven and held at room temperature for the day and the vinaigrette can be made ahead as well.
Ingredients
For the vinaigrette:
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- Kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil or avocado oil
Ingredients
- 2 sweet potatoes or garnet yams, washed and sliced into ¼” coins
- ½ cup walnut pieces
- 1 head lacinato kale, stemmed and sliced into thin pieces
- 1 head Napa cabbage, sliced in half vertically and then crosswise into thin pieces
- 1 heart of romaine lettuce head, stem removed and sliced into thin pieces
- 1 cup pomegranate seeds (drained if purchased in a container)
- 4 green onions, sliced, white and light green parts only
Instructions
- To make the vinaigrette, place the garlic clove, a pinch of salt and a fresh grinding of pepper in a small mixing bowl. Add the Dijon mustard and stir to combine. Whisk in the lemon juice, then slowly whisk in the oil until the vinaigrette is smooth and emulsified. Taste, adding more seasoning if necessary.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place the cut sweet potatoes on a sheet pan and drizzle the olive oil and a sprinkling of salt over the top. Toss to coat. Roast in the oven until the sweet potatoes are cooked through, about 8-10 minutes per side.
- In the meantime, place the walnuts on a separate sheet pan and toast in the same oven, stirring once, until lightly browned, about 8-12 minutes total. Allow the walnuts to cool, then chop coarsely with a knife.
- To assemble the salad, combine the kale, cabbage, and romaine lettuce in a large serving bowl. Drizzle with a tablespoon of the vinaigrette and toss to coat. Add the sweet potato slices, walnuts, pomegranate seeds, green onions, and another tablespoon of vinaigrette. Toss to coat again, adding enough vinaigrette to ensure the greens are well coated but without leaving any vinaigrette in the bottom of the bowl. Once the salad is dressed, taste, adding additional salt or pepper if desired. Serve immediately.
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