Why serve your hungry family a boring green salad when you can surprise them with a tongue-tantalizing Southwestern-style broccoli salad inspired by Jessica Gavin? This healthy, hearty salad is a tasty way to get your kids to eat more vegetables and actually enjoy them. Featuring crisp broccoli florets that are blanched just until their raw edge softens, this salad is composed of bacon, golden raisins, pine nuts, red onion, crumbled goat cheese, and a creamy, spicy Southwestern yogurt-based dressing. The mouthwatering medley of spicy flavors will make your everyday meals more exciting, and if you serve it at holiday dinners, your family and friends will reach for it before anything else on the table. ALSO TRY: Strawberry watermelon chicken salad Homemade salad dressing is the best! Instead of settling for that bottle of store-bought dressing, make your own with ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen. Nonfat Greek yogurt is thick, rich, packed with protein, and a perfect base for a creamy dressing. To make the dressing, whisk together yogurt, mayonnaise, red wine vinegar, honey, water, Dijon mustard, ancho chili powder, salt, and pepper. The ancho chili powder gives this dressing a bold Southwestern flavor. The additional ingredients deliciously balance the sweet, smoky, spicy heat of the chili powder. Once your broccoli florets are blanched and chilled in an ice water bath, this salad comes together in minutes. Simply combine the salad ingredients in a large bowl and toss with half of your homemade dressing. Serve your Southwestern style broccoli salad with additional dressing on the side.
Make the Southwestern-style salad dressing
Ancho chili powder gives this yogurt-based dressing a Southwestern punch of flavor. The sweetness of the honey deliciously balances out the chili powder heat. In a small bowl, whisk together the Greek yogurt, mayonnaise, red wine vinegar, honey, water, Dijon mustard, ancho chili powder, black pepper, and salt. Set aside.
Blanch the broccoli florets
Blanching is a quick way to take the raw edge off the broccoli but keep it crisp. In a large saucepan over high heat, bring 8 cups of water and 1 teaspoon of salt to a boil. Add the broccoli florets and cook for 1 minute, which will make the broccoli crisp-tender.
Place broccoli florets in ice water bath
Have a large bowl, with 4 cups of water and 4 cups of ice near the stovetop where you’ll be blanching the broccoli. Use a slotted spoon to immediately transfer the broccoli to the ice water bath to halt the cooking process. Allow the broccoli florets to cool for 5 to 7 minutes, then drain them well. Place the broccoli in a large bowl.
Add the remaining salad ingredients and dressing to the broccoli
Time to assemble your salad. Add the bacon, golden raisins, pine nuts, red onion, and goat cheese to the broccoli. Drizzle half the dressing over the salad and toss well to combine. Taste and season with more salt, if needed.
Serve the salad with additional dressing on the side
Sweet and salty, this salad is absolutely delectable!
Full of flavor and crunch
A delicious way to get your greens in
Dig in!
Yield 6-8 servings Courses Sides
1/2 cup nonfat Greek yogurt2 tablespoons mayonnaise2 tablespoons red wine vinegar2 tablespoons honey1 tablespoon water1 teaspoon Dijon mustard2 teaspoons ancho chili powder1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black peppersalt to taste
For salad:
3 quarts water, divided, 4 cups and 8 cups1-1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided 1 teaspoon and 1/2 teaspoon4 cups ice cubes1 pound broccoli florets, cut into 1-inch pieces2 slices crispy bacon, cooked, chopped1/3 cup golden raisins, roughly chopped1/3 cup pine nuts1/3 cup red onion, 1/4-inch diced2 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
