Healthy Broccoli Salad
Healthy Broccoli Salad with a sweet tahini dressing is the perfect summer side dish for backyard parties and BBQs. It's a lightened up version with no mayo and is totally oil-free.
Servings: 6 -8 servings
Calories: 154kcal
Ingredients
- 2 medium heads broccoli
- 2 cups red seedless grapes halved
- 1 cup chopped seedless cucumber
- ½ of a red onion sliced thin
- ¼ cup raw shelled sunflower seeds
- ¼ cup fresh chopped parsley
- 1 recipe Citrus Tahini Dressing
Instructions
- Chop the broccoli florets into small bite size pieces. Chop off the bottom 2 inches of stalk and throw way. Slice the remaining stalk into thin strips, then chop crosswise into bite size pieces. You need about 6 heaping cups.
- Toss the chopped broccoli and stems into a large bowl. Add the halved grapes, chopped cucumber, sliced red onions, sunflower seeds, and fresh parsley.
- In a separate small bowl, whisk together the dressing ingredients. Pour the dressing over the salad and mix well to combine.
- Store covered in the fridge until serving.
Notes
*If you prefer, you could lightly steam the broccoli. I would suggest steaming it for just a few minutes and then getting it straight into an ice bath to stop the cooking process and preserve the bright green color.
*Sunflower seeds can be toasted if you like. Simply add to a hot dry skillet over medium heat for 5 to 7 minutes until fragrant, stirring frequently to prevent burning.
*Optional add-ins: thinly sliced radishes, shredded carrots, diced celery, sliced green onions, sliced almonds, dried cranberries or golden raisins would all work really well here, either as substitutions or additions. Just make sure if you add these in addition to the original ingredients you cut down on the amount of each or make extra dressing.
*Ingredients for the Citrus Tahini Dressing call for optional pure maple syrup and optional water. I would highly suggest using at least 1 tablespoon of pure maple syrup to balance the mild bitterness of the broccoli. Taste and adjust to your liking. You want a strong flavor because it will mellow once it mixes with the salad ingredients. You likely won't need any water as the dressing should be on the thicker side to coat the salad, but it will depend on how thick or runny your tahini is. The dressing should be about the consistency of mayo.
If you don't like or want tahini, you can use an equal amount of vegan mayo (Vegenaise or Just Mayo are both great or homemade vegan mayo) or unsweetened plain dairy-free yogurt instead, along with the remaining dressing ingredients. You could also swap out fresh lemon juice for the orange if you like.
Nutrition
Calories: 154kcal | Carbohydrates: 22g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Sodium: 132mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 13g