Warm Sweet Potato Salad with Spinach & Cranberries

Michele Pesula Kuegler

It’s a big bowl full of healthy comfort food.

5 from 1 vote

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 35 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Servings 2 main dish servings

Ingredients

  

• 2 medium sweet potatoes about 1-1/2 pounds
• Olive oil
• Salt & pepper
• 1/3 cup diced red onion
• 1/2 cup apple cider
• 1/3 cup dried cranberries
• 1/4 cup cider vinegar
• 1/2 5-ounce package fresh baby spinach
• 2 tablespoons chopped walnuts optional
• 2 tablespoons blue cheese optional

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 400.
• Peel and cut sweet potatoes into 1/2” cubes.
• Place cubed sweet potato on baking tray and coat with 1/2 to 1 tablespoon olive oil.
• Season with salt and pepper.
• Bake for 15-20 minutes or until fork tender.
• While baking, heat a 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil in small saucepan.
• Add diced onion; saute for 5 minutes.
• Add cider and cranberries, and simmer for 5 minutes.
• Add cider vinegar, and simmer for another 5 minutes.
• When sweet potatoes are fork tender, remove pan from oven.
• Immediately transfer sweet potatoes to a mixing bowl.
• Top with baby spinach.
• Pour hot cider mixture over potatoes and spinach.
• Toss to combine.
• Serve, topped with walnuts and/or blue cheese, if desired.

Keyword warm salad

It’s the first full week of 2020 and probably the week in which your life returns to the normal schedule of work/school/home. Although the festivities of November and December are quite fun, there’s also something nice about returning to a regular schedule. A big part of that for me is returning to a typical eating schedule.

While I do enjoy indulgences, I also love eating healthfully. I truly am that person who gets excited for a salad. I know most people see salads and think that they’re boring and flavorless. In my perspective that’s totally untrue. With a good base and interesting ingredients, a salad can be a delightful meal.

Today I’m here to show you that not only are salads interesting, but they also can be made into warm dishes. Because although I do enjoy a salad, in the middle of winter I am craving food that is warm. Today, I am happy to share this delightful hybrid- a warm salad.

What I like even more than a salad served warm is a salad that has a dressing that is completely healthy. And it’s flavorful to boot! There’s no need for mayonnaise, sour cream, or oil to add flavor. This salad gets all the flavor it needs from cider vinegar and cider. Your waistline will thank you.

We have been eating a mainly vegetarian diet at home, so I topped the individual salads with walnuts and blue cheese to provide some tanginess and crunch. However, if you’re eating vegan, simply omit the blue cheese. This is one of those one size fits all recipes.

Make this salad, and then let me know what you think. It might surprise you how delicious and filling a salad can be!