This homemade Sweet Kale Salad is a copycat inspired by popular salad kits sold in stores. It's a chopped salad that's loaded with crunchy toppings and a creamy poppyseed dressing.
About This Recipe
This sweet kale salad is easy to throw together in about 15 minutes, and is tasty as a light meal or a side salad.
The ingredients in this recipe are inspired by popular salad kits found in stores (like Costco). There are a few similar sweet kale salad kits in stores, and this recipe is our own homemade, simple version of them.
This is a chopped salad that's crunchy, creamy and sweet. Plus it holds up well as leftovers or meal prep if you need to make it ahead of time.
Ingredients
Here's what you'll need to make this recipe. The full recipe and ingredient list can be found at the bottom of the page.
- Kale
- Green onions
- Broccoli slaw
- Dried cranberries
- Pepitas
- Goat cheese
- Radicchio, optional
Creamy Poppyseed Dressing:
- Greek yogurt
- Honey
- White vinegar
- Poppy seeds
- Onion powder
Instructions
Here's how to make this recipe in 3 simple steps:
- Mix the dressing: in a small bowl or jar, stir together the dressing ingredients. Add water (about 2 - 4 tablespoons) until it reaches your desired thickness.
- Make the salad: add all of the salad ingredients to a large bowl. Drizzle the dressing on top and toss to mix. Use as much of the dressing as preferred.
- Serve: enjoy immediately or store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3-4 days.
Variations
Here's some of the most popular substitutions and additions for this recipe:
- Kale: curly kale works best because the creamy dressing coats all the curls in the leaves; but any variation of kale would be tasty. Remove the stems before chopping for best texture.
- Pepitas: instead of roasted & salted pepitas, you can use raw pepitas or sunflower seeds.
- Radicchio: this is optional; a close substitute would be red cabbage. Radicchio has a sharp flavor that adds a slightly spicy/bitter depth of flavor to this recipe.
- Cheese: feel free to swap out goat cheese for your favorite cheese (for example: parmesan, cheddar, feta, gorgonzola).
- Greek yogurt: mayonnaise can be used instead.
About the Dressing
This recipe uses a deliciously Creamy Poppyseed Dressing. It's thick, sweet, and coats the kale leaves perfectly.
The dressing has a base of Greek yogurt; but if you prefer you could use mayonnaise instead.
Dressing options:
Here's a few other dressing options that would also be tasty. Creamy dressings will work best:
- Creamy Tahini
- Creamy Italian Dressing
- Ranch Dressing
Frequently Asked Questions
Chop your kale by removing the stems and then chopping it into bite-sized pieces.
Yes, you can make this recipe ahead of time and it will stay good for up to 3-4 days.
This recipe makes about 3 servings, depending on portion size. If you serve it as a side salad, it will serve 5-6.
How to Serve
This salad could be served as a light lunch or dinner; or you could pair it with a protein to make it into a bigger meal. Chicken, fish or even chickpeas would all be a tasty addition. Or add the salad into a tortilla to turn it into a wrap.
How to Store
Store your leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days. Because it uses a base of kale, this recipe keeps its texture well and is tasty as leftovers.
Similar Recipes
If you love this salad, you'll love our other homemade copycat of a popular salad kit: Sesame Chicken Salad.
Or if you're craving more kale: check out our Fall Harvest Salad with Creamy Tahini Dressing.
If you make this recipe, be sure to leave a comment & rating at the bottom of this page!
Sweet Kale Salad
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 3 servings 1x
Description
This homemade Sweet Kale Salad is a copycat inspired by popular salad kits sold in stores. It's a chopped salad that's loaded with crunchy toppings and a creamy poppyseed dressing.
Ingredients
- 4 cups chopped curly kale
- 4 green onions, sliced
- 2 cups broccoli slaw
- ½ cup dried cranberries
- ½ cup shredded radicchio, optional
- ½ cup roasted & salted pepitas
- ½ cup goat cheese crumbles (about 3 ounces)
Creamy Poppyseed Dressing:
- ¾ cup plain whole greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar
- 1 tablespoon poppy seeds
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
Instructions
- Mix the dressing: in a small bowl or jar, stir together the dressing ingredients. Add water (about 2 - 4 tablespoons) until it reaches your desired thickness.
- Make the salad: add all of the salad ingredients to a large bowl. Drizzle the dressing on top and toss to mix. Use as much of the dressing as preferred.
- Serve: enjoy immediately or store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3-4 days.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Category: Salad
Keywords: kale, salad, fall, autumn, winter, pepitas, pumpkin seeds, broccoli slaw, poppyseed, poppyseed dressing, creamy, cranberries, goat cheese, radicchio, copycat, cosco, chopped
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