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    Home » Recipes » Salad

    Thanksgiving Salad Recipe

    Published: Nov 14, 2019 · Modified: Jun 3, 2020 by Adrianne

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    Thanksgiving Salad with text overlay

    Thanksgiving Salad is a salad that compliments turkey perfectly! So of course, we also need Appetizers and  Side dishes to make our table complete! Why not also try our Christmas Wreath Pavlova so we can eat it twice this festive season! 

    Thanksgiving Salad Recipe

    Let's start our thanksgiving menu with the Thanksgiving Dip or super cheesy Baked Brie with Garlic. If you have lots of eaters, try the Spinach Cob Loaf!

    Do you serve salad on Thanksgiving?

    Yes, you do and this recipe is perfect for that!

    Occasions like this are so fond in my heart because you get to spend a lot of time with family and friends, relaxing and enjoying each other's company.

    The food is a big deal on these occasions. There always seems to be A LOT more of it than any other time of year and there are left overs for days on end!!

    In developing the recipe for this salad, I wanted to really create a salad that was the epitome of Thanksgiving.

    Thanksgiving Salad questions answered

    About the recipe:

    • Roasted Pumpkin with lots of spices says to me 'warm and heartening'
    • The colours of the pumpkin, kale and sun-dried tomatoes say to me 'Thanksgiving' and 'Christmas'
    • The crispy bacon, because I wanted to add the 'yum' to the dish
    • The sweet peach drizzle, as ain't no Thanksgiving Salad complete without that!!
    Thanksgiving Salad 4 | Sweet Caramel Sunday
    Thanksgiving Salad 5 | Sweet Caramel Sunday

    What are the ingredients for a salad?

    We use some cumin, chilli flakes, rosemary, salt and pepper mixed with a little olive oil to make our seasoning mix. Which we then coat our peeled and chopped pumpkin pieces in.

    This goes into the oven to roast away and the house begins to smell like Thanksgiving!!!

    Thanksgiving Salad
    Ingredients for thanksgiving salad on white background

    Our Sweet Peach drizzle is prepared by boiling some peaches in a bit of their own juice with a tiny touch of sugar. You can even use the drizzle for the turkey if you like! 

    This healthy Thanksgiving Salad is large enough to feed a crowd! 

    We need this to be sweet because the kale is very bitter. I know you could use spinach or other greens here, but trust me, it is well worth it if you are game enough to give it a go.

    Thanksgiving Salad 10 | Sweet Caramel Sunday

    Thanksgiving salad recipe ideas

    I always love to try and show you guys exactly what goes into my salads, so you can recreate it at home in easy steps.

    So when all is said and done, we want to pour our sweet peach drizzle over the salad. All over baby, we want LOTS of that sweetness to cut through the bitterness of the kale.

    Thanksgiving Salad 12 | Sweet Caramel Sunday

    When you dress and toss the salad, you should notice that the bowl has transformed into its very own thanksgiving apparition! Fall salads have the potential to make your Thanksgiving Menu soar! 

    Thanksgiving Salad 15 | Sweet Caramel Sunday

    What is a good Thanksgiving Menu?

    A good thanksgiving menu one is one that has a lot of variety! From our Spinach Cob Loaf to our Grazing Platter, there is a recipe here for every thanksgiving menu!

    Adrianne

    Thanksgiving Salad Recipe

    Thanksgiving Salad

    Thanksgiving Salad is on the menu on Sweet Caramel Sunday! With colourful ingredients and a Sweet Peach Drizzle your Thanksgiving table will be complete!
    5 from 11 votes
    Print Rate
    Course: Dinner, leftovers, Lunch, thanksgiving
    Cuisine: American, Australian, International
    Keyword: quinoa salad, thanksgiving
    Prep Time: 20 minutes
    Cook Time: 20 minutes
    Total Time: 40 minutes
    Servings: 8
    Calories: 585kcal
    Author: Adrianne
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    Ingredients

    Thanksgiving Salad

    • 1 butternut pumpkin peeled and diced, seeds removed
    • 200 grams streaky bacon
    • 400 g chickpeas drained and rinsed
    • 280 g sun-dried tomatoes drained, not rinsed
    • 1 bunch kale top ¾, rinsed and shredded
    • 1 tablespoon chilli flakes
    • 1 teaspoon rosemary
    • 1 teaspoon cumin
    • 1 tsp salt
    • 1 teaspoon cracked pepper
    • ⅓ cup olive oil
    • 2 cups tri-colour quinoa dried
    • 4 cups water

    Sweet Peach Drizzle

    • 825g peach slices in syrup
    • 1 tablespoon brown sugar

    Instructions

    Thanksgiving Salad

    • Preheat the oven to 180 to 190 C (350–375 F). Line one baking tray with grease-proof paper. Line another with grease-proof paper and a wire rack 
    • Place bacon on wire rack and cook for 20 minutes or until crispy. When cool, cut with kitchen scissors. 
    • Cut pumpkin in half. Remove seeds using a spoon. Peel, then chop into small cubes 
    • In a small mixing bowl, combine olive oil, chilli flakes, cumin, rosemary, salt and pepper. Stir to combine. Use a pastry brush to coat pumpkin pieces. Cook for 20 minutes on top rack of oven. Use a skewer or fork to test that the pieces are thoroughly cooked. If the skewer doesn't go straight through, cook for another 5 minutes and test again. 
    • Add dried quinoa and water to a medium sized saucepan, bring to the boil. Stir occasionally. The water will fully absorb into the grain. 
    • Drain and rinse chickpeas 
    • Drain oil from sun-dried tomatoes. Chop into small pieces 
    • Use the top ¾ of the bunch of kale. Cut this into smaller pieces, then use a food processor to shred. Add 3 tablespoons of the peach syrup to the kale and stir to combine 
    • Dress and toss salad with Sweet Peach Drizzle 

    Sweet Peach Drizzle

    • Open can and pour contents (minus 3 tablespoons syrup needed for kale) into a medium sized saucepan
    • Add brown sugar and bring to boil, stir to combine 
    • Reduce to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes 
    • When cool use a handheld blender to blitz peaches into smooth liquid 

    Notes

    • This makes a HUGE salad folks, I am not kidding, it is HUGGGGEEE!! 
    • If you really really can't handle the thought of the kale, stick with green and use spinach leaves instead. (But you will be happy if you give the kale a try....trust me) 
    • Use kitchen scissors to chop your sun dried tomatoes and bacon 
    • When dressing the salad, pour the Sweet Peach Drizzle directly onto the kale and then mix it all in 
    • A salad like this is easy to toss using 2 spoons and moving your hands around at the same time to mix it all in together 
    • The chilli flakes won't make the pumpkin TOO spicy. But if you really don't like chilli or know a guest who won't, use thyme instead 
    • The wire rack method for cooking the bacon will ensure that the fat drips off onto the lower part of the tray, so the bacon doesn't sit in it. 
    • You CAN use a microwave rice cooker to make your quinoa (whoop whoop hooray isn't that the BEST thing EVER, hello more time to dance around the kitchen!) 
    • I used a jar of sun-dried tomatoes hence the oil, you can also get them from the grocery deli section fresh, not in oil 
    • Don't discard the peach syrup, we use some for flavouring the kale to take away the bitterness and some for cooking the peaches 
    • It is best to wait till the peaches are COOL  before blitzing them. This is especially true if using a blender. If you are in a hurry, you can place the saucepan into the fridge for a bit which will cool the contents

    Nutrition

    Calories: 585kcal | Carbohydrates: 78g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 24g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 16mg | Sodium: 579mg | Potassium: 2043mg | Fiber: 13g | Sugar: 26g | Vitamin A: 5905IU | Vitamin C: 47.3mg | Calcium: 140mg | Iron: 7.8mg
    Did you make this recipe? Share on Instagram!It makes my day when you make my recipes! Tag @sweetcaramelsunday
    Please note this recipe was published on 14th October 2018 and updated on 24th November 2019

    Try these next...

    • Cherry Tomato Caprese Salad
    • Healthy Panzanella Salad
    • Pear Gorgonzola Salad
    • Sardine Salad

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Paula Montenegro says

      November 15, 2019 at 12:19 pm

      5 stars
      I really love to have salad alternatives for the holidays, and this looks like one of the best options! Healthy yet delicious, it will make an appearance on my table!

      Reply
      • Adrianne says

        November 19, 2019 at 5:38 am

        That is great to hear, thanks for your feedback Paula!!

    2. Angela says

      November 15, 2019 at 12:53 pm

      5 stars
      I could eat this salad every day and not get bored of it! It's completely perfection. Thanks so much for the great recipe!

      Reply
      • Adrianne says

        November 19, 2019 at 5:43 am

        No worries Angela, it is great to hear your thoughts on it, cheers!

    3. Leslie says

      November 15, 2019 at 1:40 pm

      5 stars
      Mmmm. I love kale. And adding pumpkin and quinoa sounds amazing.

      Reply
      • Adrianne says

        November 19, 2019 at 5:44 am

        Me too Leslie!! Love your positive thoughts. Cheers

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