DIY Sweet Kale Salad Kit

A recipe inspired by the popular store-bought sweet kale salad kit! It comes together with kale, Brussels sprouts, broccoli slaw, dried cranberries, pepitas, optional goat cheese, and tossed with a delicious poppy seed yogurt dressing. This salad makes for the perfect side dish whether it be for a weeknight dinner or special holiday meal.

This Sweet Kale Salad recipe is hearty, delicious, and truly a must-try.

I’m a big fan of the Sweet Kale Salad Kits that are found at stores like Costco, Aldi, Trader Joe’s, and most mainstream grocery stores. They’re delicious and make the perfect side to really any meal (like our Instant Pot Baby Back Ribs), any time of the year.

And while I love the convenience of the bagged salad kits you can buy, I set out on a mission to create an option that was made with real food and better-for-you ingredients. Don’t get me wrong, I’ll still reach for the convenience option from time-to-time but I do prefer cooking from scratch and with real food ingredients (hence the name of this blog).

Not only is it better for your health but also better for your budget. Cooking from scratch is almost always the more budget-friendly option. Now I did add one ingredient that isn’t normally found in the store-bought Sweet Kale Salad kits which is goat cheese. So while this ingredient is totally optional, I really do love the flavor and creaminess it adds to the salad.

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Ingredients in this DIY Sweet Kale Salad Kit

For the poppy seed yogurt dressing:

• Plain Greek yogurt – I almost always use full-fat Greek yogurt but if you’d like a lesser fat option, you can go with 2%.
• Mayo – I like Primal Kitchen Avocado Oil Mayo. For an egg-free option use a vegan mayo or sub additional yogurt.
• Apple cider vinegar – may sub white wine or red wine vinegar
• Honey – may sub maple syrup
• Orange juice and zest
• Lemon juice and zest
• Poppy seeds 
• Sea salt
• Onion powder 

For the salad:

• Kale – stems removed and chopped into small pieces
• Broccoli slaw – may sub shredded cabbage
• Shredded Brussels sprouts
• Dried cranberries – may sub dried raisins or blueberries. I like these dried cranberries because they are sweetened with apple juice and instead of sugar.
• Pumpkin seeds – may sub sunflower seeds or almonds
• Green onion 
• Goat cheese crumbles – optional

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How to make Sweet Kale Salad

Whisk, chop, and toss your way to this delicious Sweet Kale Salad.

• Step 1: In a small bowl, whisk together the dressing ingredients. Set aside.
• Step 2: Toast the pumpkin seeds in a pan over medium-low heat tossing often for about 5-7 minutes or until the seeds give off a toasted smell.
• Step 3: In a large bowl, combine the salad ingredients. Just before serving, pour the poppyseed dressing over the ingredients and toss gently to combine. 
• Step 4: Top with additional cranberries, pumpkin seeds, green onion, and optional goat cheese crumbles.

How to store Sweet Kale Salad leftovers

IF you have any leftovers you can store the salad in a glass storage container for up to 2 days. Any longer and the kale will become a little too soggy to enjoy. I like to serve the leftover Sweet Kale Salad with sliced chicken, steak, or salmon to enjoy as the next day’s lunch. So satisfying and incredibly tasty!

How to prep ahead Sweet Kale Salad

You can absolutely prep this salad ahead by taking care of a few of the tasks a day or two before you plan to serve the salad. If serving this as part of a holiday meal or special occasion, I like to prep as much as I can ahead so that it’s quick to put together when it’s getting close to mealtime. Here’s what you can tackle the day or two before you plan to serve the salad:

1. Make the poppy seed dressing and store in a small glass storage container or mason jar in the fridge.
2. Chop all of the veggies and store them together, in a large bowl or container, covered in the fridge.
3. Toast the pumpkin seeds and store in a storage container, zip-top bag, or stasher bag.

Now all you have to do is combine all of the ingredients in a serving bowl, toss it with the salad dressing and it’s ready to serve.

Other kale salad recipes you’ll love

• Messaged Kale Salad
• Kale Broccoli Slaw
• Thai Kale Salad with Cashews
• BBQ Ranch Chopped Salad with Brussels Sprouts and Kale

Recipe

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DIY Sweet Kale Salad Kit

A recipe inspired by the popular store-bought sweet kale salad kit! It’s made with kale, Brussels sprouts, broccoli slaw, dried cranberries, pepitas, optional goat cheese, and tossed with a delicious poppy seed yogurt dressing.

Prep: 25 minuteTotal: 25 minutes

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Servings: 8 servings 1x

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Ingredients

Dressing: 

• ½ cup Greek yogurt (2% or full-fat) 
• 2 Tbsp. mayo (may sub additional yogurt)
• 2 tsp. apple cider vinegar 
• 2 tsp. honey
• ½ small orange, juice of (2 T) + ½ tsp. orange zest 
• ½ lemon, juice of (2 T) + ½ tsp. lemon zest
• 1 Tbsp. poppy seeds 
• ½  tsp. sea salt
• ¼  tsp. onion powder 

Salad:

• 4 cups kale, stems removed and chopped into small pieces
• 12 oz. bag broccoli slaw
• 2 cups shredded Brussels sprouts
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 1/3 cup pumpkin seeds, toasted
• 1/3 cup sliced green onion
• 1/2 cup (4 oz.) goat cheese crumbles, optional

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Instructions

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the dressing ingredients. Set aside.
2. Toast the pumpkin seeds in a pan over medium-low heat tossing often for about 5-7 minutes or until the seeds give off a toasted smell.
3. In a large bowl, combine the salad ingredients. Pour the dressing over the ingredients and toss gently to combine. 
4. Top with additional cranberries, pumpkin seeds, green onion, and optional goat cheese crumbles.

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Nutrition Information

• Serving Size: 1/8 of recipe
• Calories: 205
• Fat: 11 g
• (Sat Fat: 5 g)
• Sodium: 295 mg
• Carbohydrate: 17 g
• (Fiber: 5 g
• Sugar: 9 g)
• Protein: 13 g

Dietary

Egg-FreeGluten-freeGrain-FreeNut-freeVegetarian

© The Real Food Dietitians

Recipe By: Stacie Hassing

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Photo Credit: The photos in this blog post were taken by Jess of Plays Well with Butter.