Lately I am a fan of easy, fuss-free recipes. The truth is, that as much as I like to experiment and try out new recipes, in the past few days my priority has simply been to bring some nutritious food to the table, and to do so quickly! This recipe happened one day in this manner, and I quite liked how it turned out. This is why I decided to share it with you. It is really easy and does not require a lot of time, if you have done some meal prepping in advance (something I am now doing regularly). So if you have some baked sweet potatoes in the fridge, and some pre-washed spinach, then tossing this salad together should really take only 10 minutes.
I love adding roasted nuts to my salads, as they bring a nice crunchy texture. Adding some tangy flavor makes a salad more exciting, and I have opted for pomegranate for this recipe to add a slightly sour and sweet taste. Pomegranate can really make any recipe look better, as it looks like a red gemstone, and is so pretty! It is a rich source of anti-oxidants (contains three times more antioxidants as both green tea and wine) and has anti-inflammatory properties. It also provides for many vitamins, such as vitamin A, C and E, as well as folate. As pomegranate is coming in season now, make sure you include it into your menu more often to take advantage of its nutritional properties.
Sweet potatoes are a staple in my kitchen these days, so it was only logical that they will make it into this salad. They are an incredibly warming and comforting food, and are a rich source of beta-carotenes, vitamin C, manganese, and vitamin B6.
Lastly if you have never tried roasting nuts (any nut really) and blending them with some nutritional yeast, then I dare you to try it immediately! I just love the flavorful and tasty combination of these two simple ingredients. This mixture also makes for a good hard cheese substitute, as the nutritional yeast gives a mild cheesy flavor and the nuts offer some crunch.
But let’s get back to the recipe. Here is what you’ll need for it:
Spinach and sweet potato salad with crispy walnuts and fresh pomegranate
Ingredients
- 300gr fresh spinach, washed and chopped
- 200gr baked sweet potato
- 100gr tofu, cubed
- the seeds from ½ pomegranate For the crunchy walnuts:
- 70gr walnuts
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- ½ tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp extra virgin olive oil For the salad dressing:
- juice of ½ lemon
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
Directions
- In a salad bowl add the washed and chopped spinach and the baked sweet potatoes.
- Heat up the oven to 170C degrees
- In a small pan, heat up a little oil and add the tofu cubes. Cook them until they become slightly golden on the outside. Add to the salad bowl.
- Place the walnuts on a baking sheet and roast in the oven for about 5 min until they become fragrant.
- Transfer them into a food processor and together with the nutritional yeast, olive oil and salt, blend until they reach a sand-like consistency. You don’t want to over-process them.
- Add the nuts and the pomegranate seeds to the salad.
- In a small bowl whisk all dressing ingredients together. Pour over the salad and mix well.
