Last week I had to harvest 7 broccoli crowns that were getting burnt in the sun. I have been using it as a side dish, adding it to salads, and making stir-frys. I needed a new way to serve up broccoli before my family started complaining, so I decided to create a broccoli salad. I had a nutty broccoli salad at a local deli that I thought was good, but one child didn’t like one of the ingredients and my husband didn’t like the nut they had used in their recipe. I decided to come up with a broccoli salad recipe that the entire family would enjoy.
The good thing about making my own broccoli recipe is I was able to use items that I already had on hand. I added cranberries,sunflower seeds, and pecans to my salad. If you decide to try this, please adapt it to what you already have available to you and the items that your family enjoys.
Dressings for Broccoli salad usually consist of mayonnaise and sugar. I added balsamic vinaigrette when creating the dressing for this salad. It adds a unique flavor that blends well with the other ingredients. If you are watching your calories, you can replace some or all of the mayonnaise with plain yogurt.
Nutty Broccoli Salad Recipe
Ingredients:
- 5 cups broccoli florets
- 1/2 cup cranberries
- 1/2 cup pecans
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 6 pieces of bacon, cooked and crumbled
- 1/4 cup unsalted sunflower seeds
Dressing Ingredients:
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 2 Tablespoons balsamic vinaigrette (I used Annie’s Naturals because it is gluten free)
- 1/4 cup + 1 Tablespoon sugar
Directions:
- Cook bacon. (Here’s how to easily cook bacon in the oven.)
- While the bacon is cooking, chop the vegetables.
- Combine dressing ingredients in a small bowl, stir well.
- Mix salad ingredients together in a large bowl.
- Pour dressing over salad, mix until thoroughly coated.
- Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, until chilled.
- Serve cold.
- 5 cups broccoli florets
- ½ cup cranberries
- ½ cup pecans
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 6 pieces of bacon, cooked and crumbled
- ¼ cup unsalted sunflower seeds
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 2 Tablespoons balsamic vinaigrette (I used Annie's Naturals because it is gluten free)
- ¼ cup + 1 Tablespoon sugar
- Cook bacon.
- While the bacon is cooking, chop the vegetables.
- Combine dressing ingredients in a small bowl, stir well.
- Mix salad ingredients together in a large bowl.
- Pour dressing over salad, mix until thoroughly coated.
- Refrigerate for 2 hours, until chilled.
- Serve cold.
More Salad Recipes:
- Taco Salad
- Low-Fat Taco Salad
- Apple Walnut Salad
- Loaded Baked Potato Salad
- Cajun Ranch Potato Salad
- Jalapeno Popper Potato Salad
- Italian Pasta Salad with Grilled Pork
- Southwest Steak Salad with Honey Lime Dressing
- Strawberry Spinach Salad with Raspberry Vinaigrette
- Chicken and Mango Salad with Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing
Diana Barrett says
Hi Alea,
Your salad looks fantastic. The broccoli looks very green in your pictures so I was wondering if you used blanched the broccoli or left it raw? If the broccoli is blanched could you please give me instructions on how long you leave it in boiling water etc…? Thanks.
Alea Milham says
I used raw broccoli.
Alea says
I think that is a good idea! Since I don't have a lap top I have to print out recipes eventually. Even if I had a lap top, I don't know if I would want it in the splash zone. 🙂
~ ~ Ahrisha ~ ~ says
Hi Alea<
Your rendition of the salad looks like a winner to me. I love all the nuts you have added. This recipe of yours is a keeper.
About filing recipes from the internet. Here is how I do it. I'm an old fashioned gal and still like to have a recipe on paper as I work from it so I copy the recipe and paste it to a word document, then print a copy. You might laugh at this but here goes. I have a small filing cabinet and have 1 drawer dedicated to recipes filed under themes like salads or cakes. When I'm ready to cook I can pull the recipe and take it to the kitchen. Just like the little 3×5 card files our grandmothers and mothers used only BIGGER a whole sheet per recipe so I can actually read it!
~ ~Ahrisha~ ~
annkroeker says
I love broccoli salad–I could eat an entire mixing bowl of it all by myself! I appreciate your creativity with this–freeing me to stray from the recipe if need be.