This Harvest Salad made with roasted chickpeas and sweet potatoes, crisp apples, crunchy pumpkin seeds, and kale combines all your favorite seasonal fall flavors into one epic salad. Add it to any meal this season or enjoy it as a Thanksgiving side dish.
Recipe: $12.26 | Per Serving: $3.07 | Yield: 4
This fall harvest salad is loosely based on the Harvest Kale Salad by Sweetgreen - one of my favorite seasonal salads! We’re using seasonal kale, sweet potatoes, apples, and pumpkin seeds, and making a quick but punchy mustard-balsamic dressing.
I’m using feta here instead of goat cheese because it is easier to find, and usually cheaper, but goat cheese is a great option as well. Feel free to add grilled chicken and black rice if you have it to make it more like the original.
I have this salad written as a high protein side dish, but if you’d like to bulk it up further, feel free to add quinoa, wild rice, or grilled chicken to enjoy as a main dish.
For more hearty salads you've got to try this Mediterranean Lentil Salad or my Cabbage Crunch Salad! They also make tasty side dishes but easily be transformed into something more filling.
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Why You Will Love This Harvest Salad Recipe
- One of the Best Tasting Healthy Fall Salads. It's a winning combination of sweet, savory, and tangy flavors. Even better, it's nutritionally balanced and packed with a variety of nutritious vegetables.
- Stunning Addition to the Table. This fall harvest salad recipe looks spectacular in a bowl on the table though it probably won't stay that way long once your guests start to dig in!
- Full of Fall Flavors: This seasonal salad really highlights some of the best fall flavors. From sweet, tender sweet potatoes, to crunchy pumpkin seeds, and the vibrant mustard dressing. It's so good.
- Excellent for meal prep! I made this three weeks in a row (I know, crazy) for my lunches while I was setting into my culinary program and it lasted so well. Kale can be massaged and dressed ahead of time without turning into sad wilty greens like spinach and romaine. You'll love it!
Ingredients
- Chickpeas: You can use canned chickpeas or cook them from dry if you prefer. You won't need two full cans but save the rest and add it to a quinoa bowl for a little extra protein or you can roast them until crunchy in the oven to keep on hand as a snack.
- Sweet potato: Adds a bit of sweetness and the quintessential flavors you want in a fall salad.
- Kale: This hearty green stands up really well in salads and really pairs well with the sweet potatoes and apples. You can also use baby spinach or mixed greens if you prefer. We will be massaging it like in this Tahini Kale Salad to give it that perfect texture for salads.
- Apple: I love using gala, fuji, or honey crisp apples. They stand up really well in salads with a crisp texture and sweet flavor. Pears will also work in this salad but they aren't quite as crunchy and the apples and brown much more quickly.
- Feta cheese: Adds a salty, tangy flavor. You can also use goat cheese here!
- Pumpkin seeds: We are using my Roasted Pepitas for a crunchy finish! They are lightly seasoned and toasting makes the texture a touch lighter than raw pumpkin seeds.
- Pickled Red Onions: Making pickled red onions takes only a few minutes of active time. They make a tangy topping that balances the sweetness of the apple and sweet potato.
- Dressing: The simplicity of my Whole Grain Mustard Balsamic Dressing gives the salad the perfect punch to pull all the flavors together.
Be sure to check the recipe card further down the page for the full list of ingredients with the quantities you need of each one.
Variations and Dietary Modifications
The true beauty of this autumn harvest salad is its versatility. There are so many different ways you can change it up to use ingredients you have on hand or to prepare it with flavors you love. Here are few of my favorite fall salad ideas!
- Dairy-Free or Vegan: Skip the cheese or sub in your favorite non-dairy feta cheese alternative.
- Paleo: Leave off the cheese and swap the chickpeas for chicken, salmon, or another protein.
- Main Dish Salad: Add some grilled chicken or shredded rotisserie chicken to the salad to increase the protein.
- Swap the Sweet Potatoes: Replace the sweet potatoes with roasted butternut squash, pumpkin, delicata, or other winter squash.
- Pumpkin Seeds: You can use sunflower seeds instead or even a combination of pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds, walnuts, or slived or slivered almonds.
- Additional Splash of Color: Add some tart dried cranberries or pomegranate seeds for even more color.
How to Make a Harvest Salad
To get started on your autumn harvest salad, preheat the oven to 400° F, slice the sweet potatoes, and drain and rinse the chickpeas. Hopefully you've already got your dressing, pepitas, and pickled red onions prepared and ready to go!
Step 1: Roast the potatoes and chickpeas. Place the sweet potatoes and chickpeas on a lined sheet pan and toss with the olive oil and seasonings. Bake for about 25 minutes, stirring halfway through cooking.
Step 2: Prep the kale. Wash the kale and remove the stems. Stack the leaves, roll them up and then slice into thin pieces. Once you have thin slices, you can chop the kale in the opposite direction to get smaller pieces.
Step 3: Massage the kale. Add the chopped kale to a large bowl and massage using your hands with about half of the salad dressing for about 60 seconds. Prep the rest of your toppings while the sweet potatoes and chickpeas cook.
Step 4: Assemble the salad. Add the kale to a salad bowl and decoratively top with the sweet potatoes and chickpeas, sliced apple, feta cheese, pumpkin seeds, pickled red onions, and crumbled feta cheese. Drizzle with additional dressing! Serve and enjoy.
Serving Suggestions
Fall salads are a great addition to your Thanksgiving holiday, and this one doesn't disappoint. Enjoy it with other Thanksgiving recipes like this Slow Cooker Turkey Breast, Roasted Delicata Squash, and Loaded Cauliflower Casserole.
Pair it with a fall soup like my creamy Kabocha Squash Soup or this Carrot Soup Recipe flavored with turmeric and ginger.
Serve it topped with Cast Iron Chicken Thighs or along with Slow Cooker Pork Chops.
Expert Tips
- Store: You can store leftovers in the refrigerator for 3-4 days, but I would keep a little extra dressing on hand to spruce it up at serving time.
- Slicing the apples: I do prefer to slice the apples into mini matchsticks but this cut tends to brown more quickly because they have a lot of surface area for oxygenation. If you’re making this ahead or you want it to look more attractive you may want to cut the apples right before serving or cover them in water with lemon juice to slow down the browning.
- Serving: Serve it up in a large decorative salad bowl for special occasions or when serving a crowd! For single servings, you can easily assemble the salad in individual bowls instead.
More Healthy Fall Harvest Recipes
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Fall Harvest Salad
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups cooked chickpeas about 1 and a half cans, or can be cooked from dry
- 1 medium sweet potato about 1 pound
- 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- ½ teaspoon fine salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 14 ounces kale chopped (about 8 cups packed) 400 g
- 1 medium apple gala, fuji, or honey crisp, thinly sliced or cut into mini matchsticks
- 2 ounces feta cheese crumbled
- ¼ cup Toasted Pumpkin Seeds
- ¼ cup Pickled Red Onions
- 1 recipe Whole Grain Mustard Balsamic Dressing more to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400ºF. Slice the sweet potatoes into half moons, and drain and rinse the chickpeas (if using canned). Place the sweet potatoes and chickpeas on a lined sheet pan and toss with the olive oil and seasonings. Bake on 400ºF for about 25 minutes, stirring halfway through cooking.
- Wash the kale and remove the stems, then finely chop. You can do this by stacking the leaves and rolling them, then slicing thinly. Once you have thin slices, you can chop the kale in the opposite direction to get smaller pieces. Add to a large bowl with about half of the salad dressing and massage thoroughly with your hands for about 60 seconds.
- Meanwhile, prepare the toppings - slice the apple and crumble the feta, make the toasted pumpkin seeds, pickled red onions, and mustard dressing.
- To serve, add the kale to a salad bowl and decoratively top with all of the ingredients - the sweet potatoes and chickpeas, the sliced apple, the feta cheese, the pumpkin seeds, the pickled red onions, and the crumbled feta cheese. Drizzle with additional dressing and serve.
- To serve, you can divide the greens and ingredients among the serving bowls, or you can place the entire salad all in one large bowl. Feel free to toss together before serving into bowls.
Notes
- Store: You can store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to one day but once you massage the kale it will continue to soften the longer it sits. If you are making this ahead of time or know you will have leftovers, only massage the kale you are using and store all the ingredients separately.
- Slicing the apples: I do prefer to slice the apples into mini matchsticks but they do tend to brown more quickly because they have a lot of surface area for oxygenation. if you’re making this ahead or you want it to look more attractive you may want to cut the apples right before serving or cover them in water with lemon juice to slow down the browning.
- Serving: Serve it up in a large decorative salad bowl for special occasions or when serving a crowd! For single servings, you can easily assemble the salad in individual bowls instead.
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