Happy Thanksgiving to all my lovely fellow Canucks- here’s a great sweet potato and cranberry recipe that works for so many different diets and has a wonderful holiday tangy taste with just the barest hint of sweetness.
Its nut free, and a liiiittle on the addictive side. Which is good, for something so healthy and festive.
This salad is more than just delicious. Its kinda sorta phenomenal. There is this wonderful spark from the dijon mustard that is evened out with the maple syrup, and the cranberries give this lovely lift of tiny tartness. The freshly roasted pumpkin seed give a wonderful nutty crunch and the chives simply elevate it to the next level. This salad is a meal, I’m telling you!
MyRealFoodLife.com
Sweet Potato Salad with Maple Dijon Dressing
NOTE: I suggest only adding the pumpkin seeds and chives just before serving, as the warmth and moisture of the other ingredients will soon turn the seeds and herb mushy if left too long. Storing in the fridge? Just sprinkle them on before eating- keep them in a separate container.
Ingredients
- 2 sweet potatoes or yams
- 1/3 cup pumpkin seeds
- 1 cup frozen or fresh cranberries
- 1/3 cup chives, finely chopped
Dressing (adjust ingredients to suit your personal preferances)
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 cup maple syrup (Paleo: omit, or use coconut sap, or perhaps stevia?)
- 1 tbsp dijon mustard
- salt to taste
Directions
- Make slits in the skins of the sweet potatoes or yams all the way around. Roast for 1 hour at 350 in your oven, or in your microwave for about 4-6 minutes each (turn them over halfway through).
- Peel and cut them into bite sized pieces (about 1-2 inches square or so).
- Roast the pumpkin seeds on a cookie sheet at 350 degreess for 5-10 minutes or until they start to go a bit golden on the edges. Watch carefully- they can burn.
- In a skillet, cook the cranberries over high heat until they have softened.
- Chop the chives finely.
- Assemble the salad ingredients in a bowl. In a separate jar, assemble and mix the dressing ingredients.
- Dress the salad to your preference and toss it all together! Done. :D
This recipe linked to SOS October Kitchen Challenge at www.DietDessertnDogs.com .
why thank you Ricki!!
I will absolutely post this recipe in your SOS challenge… thank you so much :)
Two of my very favorite ingredients–together! I love the combo of sweet potato and cranberries. . . mmm! One of my favorite salads is a warm sweet potato-ginger combo which I’ve been making for years–I have a feeling this one could be my next “go to” version! This would be such a perfect recipe for our SOS Kitchen Challenge this month (cranberries)–hope you’ll submit it! :)
oh yay!!! amelia i’m so glad you feel encouraged, that is SO important. i know how you feel. some days you look at food and are like, maaan. i can’t do this anymore. and then you find an easy recipe and its like, *cue the angellic chorus!* :) I have a few other favorite blogs you might find helpful- google lexie’sKitchen, thespunkycoconut, elana’s pantry, dietdessertndogs, yumuniverse, paleodietlifestyle. They all address a variety of different food restrictions- i find them super encouraging and easy. the only thing, of couse, is that some use eggs, others use tomatoes, some use a bit of soy, others nuts, but overall i can always find something to perk me up a bit :D xoxo email me anytime if you’re feeling in the dumps. I totally know what its like :) xo alea
Great – vinegar is fine, so I’ll try that. Tx for the tip re. citric acid too – I’ll inquire. Thanks so much!! I’ve been totally motivated & encouraged that I can enjoy food again since I discovered your blog & recipes :).
Hi there Amelia!
Thanks so much for the sweet compliment :D
For this recipe you can use a couple different things to replace the lemon juice- if you can have vinegar, try a white wine vinegar or a rice vinegar. If vinegar is out, try 1/4 tsp citric acid dissolved in 1 tbsp water and use a few drops / adjust to taste. :) In fact, in most cases, especially with baking, you can replace citrus with citric acid. I don’t know what it is derived from, I almost wonder, given the name, that it might be derived from citrus, so do ask your local health food store if they can explain how it originates just to be sure. :D Happy baking and cooking!!
alea
Hi – I have most of the same food limitations/restrictions as you, but additionally I can’t have any citrus. Can you suggest a good substitute for the lemon juice? This recipe (as most of your others) sounds & looks yummy!!
Thanks!