Broccoli Salad - A Perfect Summer Side
Tossed with a creamy dressing, this colorfully vibrant broccoli salad is a perfect summer side salad that contains bacon, cheese, cranberries and nuts which makes for a delectably savory/sweet balance you won't be able to get enough of.
Servings: 6
Calories: 269kcal
Ingredients
For the Dressing:
- ¼ cup Homemade Mayonnaise
- 3 tbsp Whole Milk
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp stone ground mustard
- 1 tbsp chives (chopped)
- 1 clove garlic (grated)
- 1 tbsp raw cane sugar (finely blended)
- 1 tsp Dried Oregano
- 1 tsp Himalayan salt
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 1 tsp onion powder
For the Salad:
- 14 oz broccoli florets (fresh or frozen)
- ½ cup butternut squash (cubed)
- 1 tbsp extra light olive oil
- ½ tsp Himalayan salt
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
- ½ cup red cabbage (finely shredded)
- 1 tbsp red onion (finely diced)
- ¼ cup pecans (halves or roughly chopped) (optional)
- ¼ cup cheese (cheddar or Colby)
- 2 tbsp sugar-free dried cranberries (optional)
- 3 strips thick cut bacon (chopped)
Instructions
For the Dressing:
- Place all the ingredients for the dressing into a bowl and mix well to combine. Set it aside to rest so that the flavors can meld together.
For the Salad
- Preheat oven to 400°F
- Place the cubed butternut squash on a baking sheet and coat in the light olive oil and season with the salt and pepper.
- Place the thick cut bacon on a rack with a drip tray below it.
- Bake both the butternut squash and the bacon for 15-20 minutes until the squash is fork tender and the bacon has crisped up and rendered. Be sure to flip the bacon over 10 minutes through. Once cooked, remove and set aside both the squash and bacon to cool. Roughly chop the cooled bacon crosswise into strips.
- While the butternut squash and bacon are baking, blanch the broccoli by bringing 6-8 cups of water to a rolling boil and dropping the broccoli in. Let the broccoli cook for 1-2 minutes before removing and immediately placing the florets into an ice bath. Once cooled, drain and pat the florets dry with paper towels or a clean kitchen towel to remove any excess moisture.
- Assembly: In a large bowl, combine the red cabbage, red onion, and chopped pecans in a bowl.
- Add the cooled and thoroughly drained broccoli florets, cheese, the cooked and cooled squash, cranberries, and dressing. Toss lightly to distribute the dressing.
- Finally, top with the chopped bacon and lightly toss once again to distribute the bacon. Do not over mix..
- Serve immediately or place into the refrigerator for up to five days and enjoy chilled.
Notes
- You can add in any additional veggies of your choice from peppers to carrots to cauliflower. Feel free to experiment!
- Alternatively, you can season the squash with the salt and pepper and place the strips of bacon over the squash so that the bacon fat renders and drips directly onto the squash.
- Shocking and blanching the broccoli allows the broccoli to soften so it's not as fibrous. It also helps to bring out the natural sweetness of the florets while the ice bath ensures that the broccoli retains its vibrant green color. If you prefer, you can also steam the broccoli.
- You can add in the rendered bacon fat along with the dressing if you like for an extra kick of richness, and saltiness.