I love a good crunchy side dish. With summer here, I especially love eating as much light and fresh tasting food as I can get. This side dish broccoli salad is as easy to make as it is tasty. It’s so easy that it’s foolproof. Really! My measurements come with a lot of “ishs” because it’s kind of just based on the size of the carrots or the head of broccoli, for example. And you can add a little more or less of the ingredients to your taste. Another reason this is impossible to mess up is that you’re just tossing together a few simple ingredients. My (nearly) three-year-old son helped me put the ingredients in the bowl for this batch. I crossed my fingers that his interest in helping would make it more likely that he eat some, but alas, he did not. Real life post, folks. I’d love to say he gobbled it up but he’s a toddler and so he did no such thing!

Gather your ingredients:

a bunch of broccoli, 3-4 medium carrots, roasted unsalted sunflower seeds, dried cranberries, slivered almonds (though blanched will also work fine), and an Asian style dressing. I chose Simple Truth ingredients for my broccoli salad. I can get organic and natural items with Simple Truth for a affordable price that make eating healthy a lot more attainable for us. As a part of Kroger’s My Magazine Sharing Network, I have been fortunate enough to try several Simple Truth products for free and have been given a series of coupons to use on produce and pantry items.

Wash, dry, and chop your broccoli florets.

In the picture mine pieces look rather large but I maybe made a medium sized cut. You could cut as small as you’d like if you want more of a “chopped salad” appeal and less large florets. Put these in a mixing bowl.Next, wash, peel, and shred your carrots.

I used four medium sized carrots because once I get toward the end of the carrot when shredding, I abandon ship and eat the ends, too many knicked fingers in the past. Add these to your mixing bowl.Measure out your dried cranberries, roasted sunflower seeds, and slivered almonds.

Add these to the bowl- but see the options regarding almonds.

You have a few options with the almonds:

1. For allergies- omit almonds
2. Add almonds to your salad mix
3. Top your broccoli salad with almonds when ready to serve

I just to add mine to the mix, but if you wanted to use them as a topping after dressing the salad, that could make a pretty presentation for serving.

Add dressing to the bowl and gently toss.

You may need slightly more or less than 1/2 a cup depending on how much volume you have with the broccoli and carrots. My recommendation would be to add 1/4 cup first and go from there. You can always add but you can’t take away. I add just enough and then let it sit in the fridge for a few hours or even overnight before serving. You might find that if you have too much dressing to begin with, it becomes soggy overnight.

Ingredients

•  bunch broccoli (about 3ish cups)
• 3-4 medium carrots (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 1/2 cup dried cranberry (or less to your taste)
• 1/3 cup roasted unaltered sunflower seeds
• 1/3 cup slivered almonds (optional)
• 1/2 cup Asian salad dressing

 

 

Here are some fun alternative add-in ingredient options:

• Swap sunflower seeds for toasted sesame seeds
• Swap dried cranberries for raisins
• Swap crispy wonton pieces for the almonds
• Add chopped green onions
• Use a balsamic vinaigrette instead of Asian style dressing

This makes a great addition to your weekday lunch or a nice side for a potluck. Enjoy!

Rachel