This is a superfood salad if I ever saw one. Pomegranate seeds. Sweet potatoes. Broccoli. All together in a peanut dressing. Even though it doesn’t have kale, many of these veggies top my superfood chart.
I took inspiration from a recipe in 1000 Vegan Recipes where I increased the veggies in the salad and seriously increased the pomegranate seeds. If you don’t have pomegranate, dried cranberries could be a reasonable substitute. While I typically prefer acidic dressings, I kept the peanut butter in the dressing but substituted vegetable broth for the oil. This allows the peanut flavour to permeate the salad without dripping in dressing. In fact, the peanut flavour wasn’t that dominant, sitting back to highlight the natural flavours of the vegetables. Next time, I might try this with a pomegranate-infused vinaigrette as a dressing, too.
This is my submission to Deb for this week’s Souper Sundays and to Ricki’s Wellness Weekend.
Sweet Potato, Broccoli and Pomegranate Salad with a Peanut Dressing
1.5 lb sweet potatoes, unpeeled and chopped into 1.5 cm chunks (6 cups)
260g broccoli florets and stems, chopped into bite-sized pieces (3.5 cups)
1/4 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup vegetable broth (or oil, if you prefer)
1 tsp minced ginger
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp agave or maple syrup
1/4 tsp salt, or to taste
2 green onions, minced
2 tbsp cilantro, chopped
1/2 cup pomegranate seeds (from 1-2 pomegranates)
1. Place sweet potatoes on a parchment or silpat-lined baking sheet in a single layer. Roast sweet potatoes at 400F for 20-25 minutes until cooked through. Set aside to cool.
2. Meanwhile, lightly steam your broccoli for 3 minutes to remove the raw edge but keep its crisp bite. Rinse under cold water, drain and set aside.
3. In a small bowl, mix together the peanut butter, broth, ginger, lemon juice, agave and salt (to taste). Add more broth to obtain your desired consistency.
4. Combine sweet potatoes, broccoli, and green onions in a large bowl. Drizzle with the dressing. Gently fold in the cilantro and pomegranate seeds, saving a few for garnish.
Serves 6-8.
the taste space 
Super colourful salad,lovely dressing..
OMG I’m in love. Seriously, though…everything I love is right here. In this salad. And then you put peanut butter on it. You’re a genius.
Mmmm, gorgeous, and what flavours! Sweet potato, broccoli, and peanut butter are a holy trinity in my personal religion–no other foods that I can think of at the moment are so perfect together.
Yum! I love finding new ways to use peanut dressings! Did you add chopped peanuts too, or is that something else I see in the pictures?
Yes, I added chopped peanuts, too! But I preferred the salad without the additional nuts.. in lieu of promegranate arils, of course. 😉
This salad sounds AMAZING. Seriously. I want to eat it ASAP. Great idea to replace the oil with vegetable broth.
pomegranate and peanuts together, oh my! sounds heavenly 🙂
If I had some sweet potatoes in the house right now, this would be lunch. Gorgeous colors.
I’m confused. I don’t see vegetable broth listed in the recipe or the directions. Where does it come in, and how much?
Looking forward to making this, I ❤ sweet potatoes & broccoli. But I'll have to substitute the peanut butter for almond butter. Should also taste yummy!
Hey Karen, Sorry for the confusion! I forgot to add the broth to the recipe, but I added it in now. Basically you just thin the sauce to your desired consistency, so that it can dress your salad properly. I bet almond butter would be great, too. But for some reason, while I adore almonds, I never really groove the almond butter. Not sure why!
I buy Trader Joe’s RAW almond butter…makes the world of difference in flavor…like night & day compared to processed almond butter.
Thanks for explaining about the broth!
Oh, good to know. I wish we had TJ’s here! I double checked and the broth (or oil) amount should be 1/4 cup.
Definitely let me know how you enjoy the salad. 🙂
Oh, one more thought…would it be ok to use EVOO instead of the broth? Healthy fats are necessary for absorption of most nutrients, so I always add EVOO to my homemade dressing. I’m guessing the quantity would be the same as for the broth? Thanks again!
Feel free to use EVOO! The original recipe called for oil, in fact. it would help to make the nut butter more creamy, that’s for sure. 🙂
So colorful and so many healthy ingredients in one salad–love that peanut butter dressing too. Thanks for sharing it with Souper Sundays. 😉
[…] bok choy. Actually it looked like this: kale, daikon, broccoli, kale, broccoli, broccoli, kale, broccoli, baby bok choy and broccoli, and broccoli with a side of Napa cabbage. I’ll be honest: […]
This was amazing! Gorgeous with all the colors. Flavorful too. Definitely a keeper to be repeated often, even if peanut butter keeps going up in price.
Best of all: I’m no longer a pomegranate virgin! Although I will confess to being clueless as to how to get the seeds out. It was battle for a while until I figured out that I could cut the pomegranate in sections and pop the seeds out.
Thanks for posting this. You’ve made a number of people healthier and happier!
Hey Ellen, Thanks so much for the update! I am thrilled you enjoyed the salad AND lost your pomegranate virginity! I adore pomegranates but agree that they are a bugger to seed. I’ve tried opening them in water, too, because the pith will float whereas the seeds will sink. I usually only do that with large pomegranates, though. 🙂
We brought this to eat for lunch after a hike. Some people sitting at the table with us were blown away by this. It’s almost like it never occurred to them that it would be possible to make a wonderful salad using these ingredients and have it for lunch rather than a typical SAD sandwich! They were very interested in how I got the recipe, so I explained about your blog (and will send them a link). It’s not that I am trying to convert anyone to become a whole foods vegan, but if people can improve their diets a little, then it makes it fun to be a role model. I would never take the way I cook (or uncook!) and eat for granted (I appreciate so much the colors, textures, and nutrients of what I eat…and people like you who provide the instruction manual!), but it’s second nature for people like us, so it comes as a surprise that other people are surprised by what we do, but I’m happy that at least sometimes people recognize the quality of eating well and may join us, at least occasionally.
Thanks sharing the healthy eats, Ellen! I, too, feel like every time my friends/family make a meal for me, they are also helping themselves think beyond the typical SAD meal…a bonus if they like it!
There are so many blogs out there, it probably feels overwhelming where to begin.. knowing who has good recipes if you are going to buy new ingredients, etc. I definitely have my favourite blogs and cookbooks. 🙂
I also wish my blog was a bit more user-friendly to find older recipes, but alas… a task for another day.. in a year or so. 😉
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