I get excited for fall just thinking about eating this salad. It is loaded with immune boosting antioxidants in the kale, apples, sweet potatoes & herbs. It is a perfect dish to build up the body as we head into the flu and cold season. The colorful appearance and delicious fall flavors in this unique salad make it fun to serve to others.
After you scrub and cut your sweet potatoes into 1″ cubes, place them on a rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle with dried sage and a bit of avocado oil and roast for about 25 minutes at 400° F. If you overcrowd the pan, the potatoes will be steamed instead of roasted. Roasted sweet potatoes with the sage will make this salad a tasty visual delight.
I prefer to use lacinato kale vs curly kale due to the tenderness of lacinato or dino kale. The stems in this kale are not woody so you don’t need to strip the spines from the kale before chopping. Cut the kale into thin slices as seen in the video below. Lacinato kale is also more economical with 7 – 8 leaves in a bunch compared to 3 – 4 leaves of curly kale. If kale is too intense for your family, try making this salad with half kale and half romaine lettuce. Massage the kale with the sage dressing to soften the leaves, add the romaine lettuce, apples, pumpkin seeds, dried cranberries and then toss.
While the sweet potatoes are cooling, turn the oven down to 325° F to toast the pumpkin seeds. I prefer the bigger dark green pumpkin seeds. Place them on a pan and bake for about 10 minutes; they should start popping and puffing up when they are done. It’s ok to add warm sweet potatoes and warm pumpkin seeds to your salad.
In Anthony William’s book “Life Changing Foods” he states that “sage is geared toward fighting fungus. Consuming sage is wonderful for healing fungal infections… If you’ve been exposed to toxic mold, turn to sage to help detoxify.”
The sage salad dressing calls for 2 tablespoons of mayonnaise. I used vegan mayonnaise in the video below, but most often I substitute water for the mayonnaise to reduce fat. Honestly I can’t tell the difference when I add the mayonnaise, so I typically choose to leave it out. I added a large handful of sage leaves from my garden or purchase a small bunch of sage from the store. I hope you enjoy this immune boosting salad!
Autumn Kale and Roasted Sweet Potato Salad
Ingredients
2 medium sweet potatoes, scrubbed clean and cut into 1-inch cubes1 tsp. dried sage
1 splash of avocado or olive oil
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds, toasted
1 bunch lacinato kale
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1 apples, cut into chunks
Dressing:
juice of 1 lemon
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
1 small shallot, roughly chopped
1 small bunch of fresh sage, leaves separated from the stems and stems discarded
2 tbsp. mayonnaise or water
salt to taste (optional)
Directions
- Preheat oven to 400° F. Place cubed sweet potatoes onto a large, rimmed baking sheet; sprinkle with dried sage and oil. Toss well to combine. Roast sweet potatoes for 25 minutes or until lightly browned on the bottom. Set aside to cool slightly.
2. While sweet potatoes are cooking make salad dressing. Combine lemon, olive oil, mustard, shallot, and sage in a high speed blender. Mix well on high speed until creamy. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
3. Chop kale (leaving all but really tough stems on) into thin slices. Place into a large bowl. Add dressing and massage lightly to tenderize kale.
4. While sweet potatoes cool, toast the pumpkin seeds if not already toasted. Place in a 325° F oven for 10 minutes. The seeds will start to pop and puff up as they are done.
5. Add the roasted sweet potatoes (it’s ok if they are hot), pumpkin seeds, cranberries and apples. Toss gently to coast in the dressing.
My Medicinal Home 