This classic Broccoli Salad is wonderfully tasty and can be served with a number of different meals. It is great for potlucks, cookouts, and picnics (provided, of course, it is kept cold due to the mayo and sour cream content).
The salad is a great way to add veggie content to the diet. The ingredients are commonplace and the method is simple. Cook the bacon till crispy then crumble. Wash and chop the vegetables. Prepare a simple dressing and pour over salad ingredients. Yes, it really is that simple!
I like to use balsamic vinegar in the salad dressing as it has a lovely deep flavor and is not as sharp as regular white vinegar, for example. However, plain white vinegar or a red wine vinegar also work well. I suggest trying different flavored balsamics to switch up the flavor.
For best flavor, I recommend refrigerating the salad for at least 45 minutes prior to serving. It can be prepped several hours ahead. Just add the sunflower seeds at time of serving as, otherwise, they may get soft and lose their desired crunchiness.
With the smaller household in mind, I have proportioned this salad to be small with 3-4 servings. The lovely thing about this salad — well apart from the wonderful flavor — is that it is completely scalable so, if more servings are needed, it is easily doubled or tripled or even quadrupled.
[Printable recipe follows at end of post]
Broccoli Salad
Ingredients:
2 cups chopped broccoli, small bite-sized pieces
3 slices crispy fried bacon, crumbled
1/3 cup sweet pepper (red, yellow, or orange), chopped
¼ cup red onion, chopped
2 tbsp shredded carrot
1/3 cup dried cranberries
Dressing:
¼ cup salad dressing
2 tbsp sour cream
½ tbsp pure maple syrup
½ tbsp granulated sugar
½ tbsp vinegar (balsamic, red wine, or white)
1½ tsp Dijon mustard
1/8 tsp garlic salt (optional)
2 tbsp sunflower seeds
Sprinkle of freshly chopped chives (optional)
Method:
Prepare vegetables and bacon. Place in bowl along with the dried cranberries.
For Dressing: Combine all ingredients in small bowl and whisk until smooth. Pour half the dressing over the prepared vegetables and mix to coat vegetables then repeat with remaining dressing. Refrigerate for at least 45 minutes before serving. At time of serving, sprinkle salad with sunflower seeds and, if desired, chopped chives.
Yield: Apx. 3 – 4 side salad servings
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Broccoli Salad
Ingredients
- 2 cups chopped broccoli, small bite-sized pieces
- 3 slices crispy fried bacon, crumbled
- 1/3 cup sweet pepper (red, yellow, or orange), chopped
- ¼ cup red onion, chopped
- 2 tbsp shredded carrot
- 1/3 cup dried cranberries
- Dressing:
- ¼ cup salad dressing
- 2 tbsp sour cream
- ½ tbsp pure maple syrup
- ½ tbsp granulated sugar
- ½ tbsp vinegar (balsamic, red wine, or white)
- 1½ tsp Dijon mustard
- 1/8 tsp garlic salt (optional)
- 2 tbsp sunflower seeds
- Sprinkle of freshly chopped chives (optional)
Instructions
Prepare vegetables and bacon. Place in bowl along with the dried cranberries.
For Dressing: Combine all ingredients in small bowl and whisk until smooth. Pour half the dressing over the prepared vegetables and mix to coat vegetables then repeat with remaining dressing. Refrigerate for at least 45 minutes before serving. At time of serving, sprinkle salad with sunflower seeds and, if desired, chopped chives.
Recipe Notes
Yield: Apx. 3 - 4 side salad servings
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