Harvest Kale Salad with Sweet Potato, Apple & Quinoa

Harvest Kale Salad with Sweet Potato, Apple & Quinoa

This harvest kale salad with sweet potato, apple and quinoa combines plenty of fall flavours into a healthy and hearty salad that lasts in the fridge.

As much as I love all the fresh produce we bring in through the summer, fall flavours will always be my favourite. This time of year the demands of having a small homestead begin to dwindle down a bit, the garden isn’t taking up so much of my time and I can spend a little more time in the kitchen cooking and baking just for fun. It’s also the time of year when apples are in season, honeycrisp apples in particular are my favourite, and I am getting them in any way I can. Naturally they make their way into salads like this harvest kale salad.

Any time I’m looking to make a salad that holds up in the fridge, kale is my go to. Because of how structured it is, it holds up well with salad dressing without getting wilted right away in the fridge. It’s also something we have coming in from the garden spring through fall, so we have an abundance for much of the year. This salad is hearty with the addition of roasted sweet potatoes, honeycrisp apple, quinoa, chicken, goat cheese and crunchy maple spiced pumpkin seeds. Paired with an apple cider vinaigrette, this salad has many of my favourite fall flavours packed into one dish. This salad makes for the perfect meal prep for lunches throughout the week.

Variations for Harvest Kale Salad

Substitute or omit the kale. This salad could be made with any lettuce, arugula would add great flavour. Dress the salad at the time of serving if using a different lettuce to avoid wilting. This would also be great as a quinoa salad without the kale, simply triple the amount of quinoa the recipe calls for.

Use a different vinegar. The apple cider vinaigrette pairs well with the flavours included in this salad, but this vinaigrette is also great with balsamic vinegar in place of apple cider vinegar.

Use apple butter in place of honey. The vinaigrette includes some honey to sweeten it up. Use apple butter in place of the honey for a spiced vinaigrette.

Use butternut squash in place of sweet potato. Butternut squash is also a fall staple, roast it following the same instructions as the sweet potato and use in it’s place.

Use a different cheese. I love goat cheese, but I understand not everyone is a fan. Feta or sharp cheddar also works well in it’s place.

Use chickpeas in place of chicken. To make this a vegetarian meal, omit the chicken and use chickpeas instead.

Add bacon. I think this speaks for itself.

How To Make Harvest Kale Salad

Preheat the oven to 400. Toss the sweet potatoes and 1 tablespoon of olive oil together on a baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper. Roast for 20-25 minutes, tossing part way through. Sweet potatoes are ready when they are tender and golden brown. Allow to cool on the baking sheet.

Heat a small skillet over medium low. Add the pumpkin seeds, maple syrup, cinnamon and cayenne. Allow to cook 3-4 minutes until the pumpkin seeds are toasted and the maple syrup is bubbling. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Rinse quinoa and add to a pot with 1 cup of chicken broth or water. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cover the pot. Cook for 15 minutes, then remove from heat and allow to cool.

Add chicken breasts to a large pot and season with salt and pepper. Cover by 1 inch with broth or water. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook chicken until it has reached 165, about 10-15 minutes. Shred the chicken and allow to cool.

In a jar, mix together olive oil, apple cider vinegar, honey, grainy mustard or dijon, chili flakes, salt and pepper.

Massage the apple cider vinaigrette into the kale. Top with cooled sweet potato, chicken, quinoa, maple spiced pumpkin seeds, apple and goat cheese.

Store leftovers in the fridge for 3-4 days.

Harvest Kale Salad with Sweet Potato, Apple & Quinoa

Harvest Kale Salad with Sweet Potato, Apple & Quinoa

This harvest kale salad is packed with fall flavors including honeycrisp apple, maple spiced pumpkin seeds, and an apple cider vinaigrette. Quinoa, sweet potato and chicken help to make this a hearty salad that holds up well in the fridge.

Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 sweet potato, chopped
  • 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
  • 2 tsp maple syrup
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/8 tsp cayenne
  • 4 cups kale, thinly sliced
  • 1 honeycrisp apple, sliced
  • 2 chicken breasts
  • 1/2 cup dry quinoa
  • 3-4 cups chicken broth or water
  • 4 oz goat cheese
  • 1/3 cup + 1 tbsp olive oil, separated
  • 2 1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 2 tbsp honey
  • 1 tsp grainy or dijon mustard
  • 1/8 tsp chili flakes
  • salt and pepper

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 400.
  2. Add sweet potatoes to a sheet pan and toss with 1 tbsp olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.
  3. Roast sweet potatoes for 20-25 minutes, tossing half way through. Sweet potatoes are ready when they are golden and tender.
  4. Heat a small skillet over medium low.
  5. Add pumpkin seeds, maple syrup, cinnamon, and cayenne. Allow to cook for 3-4 minutes until the pumpkin seeds are toasted and the maple syrup is bubbling and remove from heat.
  6. Rinse quinoa and add to a small pot with 1 cup chicken broth or water. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cover with a lid. Cooke for 15 minutes then set aside the pot to cool.
  7. Place the chicken breasts in a large pot and season with salt and pepper. Cover with chicken broth or water by an inch. Bring to a boil over medium high heat, then reduce to a simmer. Simmer 10-15 minutes until chicken reaches 165. Remove from heat and shred.
  8. In a small jar, mix together olive oil, apple cider vinegar, honey, chili flakes, grainy mustard, salt and pepper.
  9. Dress the kale with the salad dressing and massage together.
  10. Once cool, top kale with the sweet potatoes, maple spiced pumpkin seeds, quinoa, chicken, apple, and goat cheese.

Let me know if you do give this recipe a try. I hope you love it as much as I do!

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