Let me interrupt the Christmas cookie content for a quick healthy vegan winter salad recipe! I don’t know about you guys, but every year around the Holiday’s I tend to overeat, and eat more processed foods than I normally do. In the summer I eat salads almost everyday, but it is much harder for me to eat these vegetable rich meals during the Holiday’s. Enter this healthy vegan roasted winter salad. This roasted sweet potato beet salad is loaded with healthy seasonal produce that is sure to keep you feeling your best throughout the Holiday season! If you’re looking for more healthy winter salads I have a ton on my blog. Here are some of my go-to whole foods plant based winter salads:
Why make this Roasted Winter Salad:
I am a huge advocate for eating seasonal produce like the vegetables featured in this vegan roasted beet salad for so many different reasons. First, eating seasonal produce saves so much money. I’m going to be real with you all a girl is on a budget! It never fails to blow my mind how expensive some vegetables and fruits can get when they’re out of season. Zucchini and cherries for example, both triple in price when they are not in season!
On the other hand, things such as sweet potatoes are extremely cheap in the winter. I picked up the sweet potatoes for this recipe for $0.53/lb! I also love eating seasonally, because the produce is more nutrient dense. When produce is in season, it is picked when it is, or is closer to being ripe, so you are getting all the wonderful nutrients in their best form! This vegan roasted winter salad recipe uses produce that is in season throughout the winter months. Therefore this healthy beet salad is not only nutrient dense, but super affordable too!
Best meal prep vegan salad for winter:
Another reason to love this whole foods plant based winter salad is because it is absolutely perfect for healthy winter meal prep. I used to meal prep all the time in college, so I’m always trying to create recipes that are meal prep friendly like this roasted winter salad. Since the green in this vegan roasted beet salad is brussel sprouts, it stores better and longer than other salads. This vegan winter salad recipe is also nutrient dense too, so you can be sure that you are getting a all the nutrients you need in the winter.
I find it much harder to eat healthy salads in the winter, because my body is craving calorically dense foods. While it is important to satisfy those cravings and enjoy all the delicious comfort food, it’s also important to eat healthy foods. This salad features health promoting ingredients to create a healthy winter salad recipe!
How to make this salad oil-free:
This whole foods plant based winter salad recipe is not oil-free. However, it can be made oil-free with one simple substitutions. This recipe uses healthy cold pressed oil already, but if you are strictly avoiding oil, you can sub it out. I would recommend using tahini, cashew butter, or walnut butter! it’ll require a bit more stirring, but the end result will turn out perfectly smooth! Note that it will change the appearance of this roasted winter salad, however the taste will remain similar! I love doing this trick for a majority of my salad recipes!
Ingredients for this Roasted Winter Salad:
- Sweet potatoes
- Brussel sprouts
- Beets
- Walnuts
- Cold pressed flaxseed oil
- Balsamic vinegar
- Dijon mustard
- Italian seasoning
Roasted Winter Salad
Ingredients
- 2 sweet potatoes
- 2 cups brussel sprouts
- 3 beets
- 1/2 cup walnuts
- 2 tbsp cold pressed flax seed oil
- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
- 2 tsp dijon mustard
- 2 tsp Italian seasoning
Instructions
- Begin by preheating your oven to 400. Chop the brussels sprouts in half and the sweet potatoes into cubes, and place in the oven. Chop the beats up and place on a separate baking dish (so everything doesn't turn pink!), and place in the oven. Bake for 25-30 minutes.
- Make the dressing by simply combining all ingredients together and and whisking.
- Once vegetables are golden, remove from the oven and add to a bowl. Add the chopped walnuts, and coat with the dressing. Toss and serve. Enjoy!
