Superfoods! These things are seemingly everywhere lately. A local grocery store has a shelf above the low-boy refrigeration display with bee pollen, spirulina, extra virgin coconut oil, flax powder, sea buckthorn juice, and E3 Live; all right next to the jello puddings and cream cheese. Even our Costco store has a big selection of chia, flax, hemp etc. Kind of amazing when you stop to think about it.
We went on a short little getaway to the Finger Lakes area of New York State this past weekend. It was beautiful in plenty of outright ways: the density of trees, the quaintness of the restoration, the views from up high, the sunshine.
Before we started on the drive back home on Monday, we hit a local grocery store that had this whole juice bar thing set up. And there was a tea counter where I got a delicious matcha latte made with coconut milk. I overheard an employee talking to a customer about the virtues of chia seeds. There were umpteen-million types of kale and apples available for purchase. I was flitting around without direction, just so excited. The approach and overall environment was so inspiring. I had this vague concept of an everyday superfood kind of salad formulating. Just a bunch of very nutritious, but still very accessible, foods together with some extra flavour and texture elements thrown in. Massaged kale and broccoli makes up the base with a bunch of other vibrant vegetables that we’ve been digging up. There’s a coriander-spiced + omega-pumped seedy mix on top, blueberry ginger vinaigrette, tons of lime, puffed quinoa, avocado and Himalayan salt.
AN EVERYDAY SUPERFOOD SALAD WITH FRESH BLUEBERRY DRESSING
Print there recipe here!
SERVES: 4-6
NOTES: I throw some ground coriander in with the seeds, but any spice you’re into would be great. This salad can definitely hang for a few hours if you keep the blueberry dressing off until you’re ready to serve. And a note on the blueberry dressing: the flavour isn’t like a liquified pie filling with ginger. There’s a fresh and tart quality to it. If you want a more pronounced blueberry-ness, I would suggest cooking the berries down in a saucepan with the maple syrup for a bit before you blend up the dressing.
salad ingredients:
1 bunch of kale, leaves chopped kinda small
1 broccoli branch/segment, florets finely chopped
juice of 1 lime
salt and pepper (I used Himalayan pink salt–any old salt is fine)
1 small beet (red or golden or striped), thinly sliced
1 carrot, thinly sliced
1 ripe avocado, peeled + sliced
1-2 sprigs of basil, chopped
handful of blueberries
blueberry ginger dressing ingredients:
heaped 1/4 cup blueberries
1/2 inch piece of ginger, peeled + chopped
2 tbsp raw apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp maple syrup
big splash of water
salt + pepper
1/4 cup oil (grapeseed or extra virgin olive oil)
omega seed sprinkle ingredients:
handful sunflower seeds
handful pumpkin seeds
1-2 tbsp flax seeds
1-2 tbsp chia seeds
1-2 tbsp hemp seeds
handful of puffed quinoa (or puffed millet, brown rice etc)
pinch of ground coriander
pinch of salt
In a large bowl, massage the kale and chopped broccoli with the lime juice, salt and pepper. Keep massaging until the leaves seem a bit more tender. Taste a leaf for seasoning, adjust and set aside. Chop and prep all of the other salad ingredients and set aside.
Make the dressing: combine all of the ingredients in a blender and blend on high until you have a creamy and unified mixture. Check for seasoning and sweetness, adjust and set aside.
In a medium sauté pan, combine all of the omega seed sprinkle ingredients over medium heat. Stir them around here and there until they smell toasty and the coriander is a bit more prominent. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly.
Arrange the massaged kale and broccoli on your serving plate. Top the greens with the beets, carrots, avocado, chopped basil, and blueberries. Season the whole thing with salt and pepper again. Stir up the dressing (it should have thickened a bit) and drizzle it all over the top and garnish the salad with the omega seed sprinkle. Serve it up!
This salad was incredible, and WAY less fussy than it looks. I used my trusty mandoline slicer for the carrots and beet, and everything came together really fast.
I made a double batch of the seed sprinkle (hereafter referred to as “seed sprank”), and am so glad that I did; it added a ton of texture to the salad, and made it feel more substantial. I think I’ll be making a big weekly batch of seed sprank to put on…everything. So good. Thanks, Laura!!
Just made this for my family. My 19 year old who survives on jun’ food had two large servings! The seeds add a lovely taste and crunch. Thank you!
We have made this salad twice. So freaking good.
This was an AMAZING salad! Thank you so much for sharing it! My husband and I both loved it!!!
Whoa!!! That’s a recipe I can celebrate with! I have all the ingredients in my pantry. Making it today!
Beautiful recipe, love it. We’ve just moved too, though downsized rather than expanding– still exciting filling a new place (and kitchen) with new possibilities. Good luck!
This looks and sounds delicious! Do you cook the beet and carrot at all, or are they raw?
Hi Courtney, I slice the beets and carrots super thin and leave them raw.
-L
Made this last night, absolutely delicious!
Wow! This dressing is amazing! I used honey instead of maple syrup.
So, you’re my new fave page to visit DAILY~ it’s so refreshing & healthy. Just looking at your pics and not even reading yet uplifts my spirit =) Thank you very much.
This salad is what I want to eat everyday for my lunch.
Funnily enough I’d just made myself a kind of blueberry salsa thing and while it tasted incredible, I just couldn’t work out what to do with it. Duh, Laura, put it in a salad! (PS my name is also Laura, was referring to myself there, not you, in case that sounded rude!)
It’s nice that some previously only-dreamed-of ingredients are becoming more accessible, huh? Considering I only ate candy and coffee and beer yesterday, just looking at this has given me the inspiration I need to remember that I actually do like vegetables…
The dressing sounds fantastic! We have a 2 acre farm and right now it is overflowing with beets, carrots and kale. This salad is definitely happening for lunch today!
So glad I found your blog. It’s incredible! Can’t wait to try your recipes.
K
when i was a kid, the only reason to go to ikea was the cinnamon buns…… not much has changed, not much has changed at all.
I know this is a little off topic, but I LOVE your table cloth or table runner…whichever it is. Where’d you get it? It’s beautiful!
Hey Jill! I picked it up at a Home Sense store (kinda like TJ Maxx-ish if you aren’t Canadian/from the UK). I think the producer of it was Colin & Justin :)
I love this stage of moving when you can have endless conversations about curtains or coffee tables. It never gets old does it? Also loving the every day goodness of this salad especially with that crunchy sprinkle on top.
I just got my hands on some puffed quinoa! It is quickly altering and enhancing my everyday meals. Definitely love the idea of cramming as much superfoods in one bowl, especially with the crunchies on top. By the way, I am totally sweating that patterned red runner, it’s a beauty.
Wow, what a bright and vibrant salad! Gorgeous pictures too. It will be on my salads to try list to sure!
This looks so delicious! I already added the ingredients to my shopping list for tomorrow. Thanks for sharing!
I have eaten my share of super foods, some pretty darn good and some puke inducing but this by far is prettiest and I have ever seen. and sure it tastes great.
LOVE this recipe!
I am always lookinf for new ways to chomp up my kale, without feeling like a garden rabbit. The flavors in this must be amazing, cant wait to try.
This salad sounds so amazing & packed with everything good! I definitely need to give it a try before the blueberries are nowhere to be found for winter. :)
I think this is the most beautiful salad I’ve EVER seen! No…I know it is! Also, I can completely relate to everything you said in this post. :) Let me know if you have any questions about Ikea kitchens! I assembled one completely by myself..no lie, haha. Good luck and keep savoring!
What a beautiful salad! Can’t wait to try it, especially the dressing. Thanks for sharing!
That dressing has me super intrigued! Yumo.
AH! I love this post…. superfood salads never get old, especially with your photography! Great post, thanks for sharing.
There is so much goodness in this salad! LOVE!
Those moments where you find a new store or place to eat that you connect with are so awesome! I know exactly what you mean about running about excited by all those possibilities! And this salad looks so delicious – the dressing especially. Your creativity is always so inspiring to me.
pura meraviglia…