This kale and beet salad is a healthy vegetarian fall salad with dried cranberries, pecans, and a tangy balsamic vinaigrette dressing.
This salad would be an excellent healthy Thanksgiving side dish or holiday dinner party idea!
As I mention in most of the beet posts that I do, I’m not their greatest fan, but I quite enjoyed this kale and beet salad. Roasting the beets brings out their natural sweetness and takes out some of that dirt taste lol.
So, roasted beets aren’t bad, and I’ve also found that I quite like raw beets, like in this salad or this salad. Sounds like I’m making progress.
I might as well get the pun over with as well. This roasted beet salad can’t be beet. Seriously tho.
It’s not just another pretty salad. It tastes good, but it’ll also dress up your holiday table. Or even your weeknight table. I mean, why not?
I had planned to make this roast beetroot salad with normal, run-of-the-mill kale, but I was very happy to find red kale in the grocery store. When I actually needed it. I often see colorful versions of normally green vegetables in food shops or the farmer’s market, but I’ve learned that if I don’t have actual plans to use them, it’s probably a bad idea to buy them.
And if I plan to buy anything remotely fancy, it’s nowhere to be found, so I typically stick to easily found ingredients. So anyway, all the stars aligned, and this salad has a mix of red and green kale. Not necessary, but it does give it that extra something.
I hope you will enjoy this easy beet salad recipe!
Questions? Don’t hesitate to ask!
Roasted Beet and Kale Salad
This kale and beet salad is a healthy vegetarian fall salad with dried cranberries, pecans, and a tangy balsamic vinaigrette dressing.
Ingredients
- 4 small beets peeled & quartered
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Salt & pepper to taste
- 2 bunches kale tough stems removed & torn into small pieces
- 1/4 medium red onion chopped finely
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- 1/2 cup halved or chopped pecans
Dressing:
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 clove garlic minced
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F and move the rack to the middle position.
- Prep beets. Add the beets to a baking dish along with 1 tbsp of olive oil and some salt & pepper. Toss until they're coated and roast for 35 minutes or until they're cooked through.
- Meanwhile, prep the other ingredients and add them to a large salad bowl. Whisk the dressing ingredients together in a small bowl.
- Once the beets are done, let them cool for a few minutes then add them to the salad and toss everything together until coated.
- You can serve immediately, but I like to let the salad dressing sit on the kale for about 30 minutes - it helps soften it a bit.
Recipe Notes
- I don't massage my kale, and I don't really think it's necessary if you remove all the tough stems [ but if you normally massage your kale for salads, go ahead 🙂 ]. With that said, kale is pretty tough in general, so I like to let the dressing sit on it for a while prior to serving. You can prep this salad up to an hour ahead and nothing in here will wilt. I suggest covering it and storing it in the fridge if you do make it ahead.
- I used one bunch of "normal" kale, and one bunch of red kale.
- Serves 4-6.
If you love beets, you may also like my bright pink roasted beet hummus recipe or my maple roasted beets and carrots side dish.
Aaron Delaney says
Way too many ads on your page to have to maneuver around just to get to recipe.
Natasha says
Hi Aaron. Developing, testing, and photographing recipes, plus all the other work that a food blog entails is a full-time job. The ads are what pay me so I can provide free recipes. Believe it or not, I do have fewer ads than many other blogs, and I try to keep my site easy to navigate and clutter-free so that user experience is good, while balancing the fact that this is my business (how I make money). Out of the hundreds of thousands of readers that visit my site every month, only a handful have ever complained about the ads. Maybe you have a slower internet connection or older device? In any case, if you think of website ads in the same terms as TV or radio commercials or ads in magazines, you may understand that they’re around for a reason. No ads, no recipes… and that goes for most of the food blogs out there who provide free recipes.
Anna says
I made this salad today for Thanksgiving and WOW!!!!!!!! Absolutely fantastic!!!!! I can live on this salad alone. So happy I found your site. Can’t wait to try more of your recipes.
Natasha says
I’m so happy to hear that, Anna!! So glad my recipe could be a part of your Thanksgiving. 🙂
Mary Ann | The Beach House Kitchen says
I actually have grown to like beets Natasha. I used to turn my nose up at them when I was a kid! The dressing and the combo of ingredients in this salad totally can’t be beet! (Lol!) You’re right!
Natasha says
Haha thanks, friend!! 🙂
Natasha's Sister says
Wow way to never have made this for me. Are you going to ever? You know I love kale and beets!!
Natasha says
No.