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Shaved Brussels Sprout Candied Bacon Salad – quick, festive, easy to make ahead, and so delicious. Shaved Brussels sprouts, kale, nutty Manchego cheese, warm candied bacon, buttered walnuts, and sweet pomegranates. All tossed with a delicious cinnamon apple dressing that’s sweet and tangy. Every bite of this salad is bursting with flavor. It’s the candied bacon and walnuts that create amazing textures. They’re tossed together with a little sugar and spice, then baked to deliciousness. Completely yummy atop this holiday salad. There never seems to be enough of them. This salad is bright, yummy, festive, and perfect for holiday entertaining!
We’ve officially started sharing holiday recipes!! Thanksgiving is just a few short weeks away and I am happier and more excited than ever. The holiday season feels so special this year. I feel inspired and excited to be busy creating new recipes and to share all my love and joy for the season!!
Woohoo! On Tuesday I shared gooey pecan pie brownies for our Thanksgiving dinner. Today I’m balancing the yummy brownies with a bright, make-ahead Brussel sprout salad.
I’ve definitely shared Brussels sprout salads in previous years, but I just have to share this version with you all.
The candied bacon and walnuts are what make this salad and set it apart from others. I’m so in love with the crunch, the spice, the saltiness, and the tang. They’re just addictive when sprinkled atop this salad and then topped with this cinnamon cider dressing.
So many wonderful flavors, hoping this will be a new holiday favorite!
The details
Step 1: start with the candied bacon
I’m always of the mind that Thanksgiving recipes should be simple, and this salad is no exception. They should be easy to prepare or able to be made entirely ahead of time.
Thankfully this is a great side dish to make ahead!
I always start with the candied bacon since this needs time in the oven. Use a thick-cut, unsweetened bacon. Chop the bacon into pieces and toss with fresh rosemary, maple syrup, brown sugar, and cayenne pepper.
I use 1 teaspoon of cayenne, but if that’s too spicy for you, use the cayenne to your liking.
Bake this mix until the bacon is beginning to crisp and caramelize. Then pull the pan out and add the walnuts or even pumpkin seeds. I like to add the walnuts later, they tend to easily burn.
When everything on the pan is “candied”, pull it out of the oven and season with flaky sea salt. You’ll want to eat them all just as is!
Step 2: assemble the salad
For the salad base, you’ll need plenty of raw Brussels sprouts, kale, pomegranate seeds, and manchego cheese.
You can shave the Brussels sprouts yourself using a mandolin or sharp knife or buy them already shaved at the grocery store, which is of course super convenient!
For the pomegranate, you could use dried cranberries instead. But they usually come sweetened and will be sweeter than the pomegranate.
Lastly, the manchego cheese! This is my personal favorite, but cheddar, Gouda, or parmesan cheese would be great. Oh, and I do love a goat cheese with this salad too!
Step 3: the dressing
This is such a unique dressing, and one of my favorites. Olive oil, apple cider vinegar, thyme, and fresh orange zest with a tiny pinch of cinnamon.
The flavors of an old fashioned. It’s just a little sweetness with some citrus kick to it. The flavors really complement the saltiness of the bacon.
Step 4: toss everything
Now, toss the greens with the dressing and let the flavors penetrate into the salad. Finish with the candied bits of bacon and walnuts.
The color from the pomegranate and bacon will really pop off with the dark greens underneath. It’s so pretty!!
Not only is this so pretty on a dinner table, but it’s totally delicious too. Sweet, tangy, and spicy with so many cozy holiday flavors, plus an awesome CRUNCH. Excited to share this with my family this year, I really think they’ll love it!
Looking for other salad recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Fall Harvest Roasted Butternut Squash and Pomegranate Salad
Shredded Brussels Sprout Bacon Salad with Warm Cider Vinaigrette
Pomegranate Salad with Maple Candied Walnuts
Autumn Harvest Honeycrisp Apple and Feta Salad
Lastly, if you make this Shaved Brussels Sprout Candied Bacon Salad be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Shredded Brussels Sprout Candied Bacon Salad
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 506 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Watch the How-To Reel
Ingredients
- 6-8 slices bacon, chopped
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure maple syrup
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
- 1 cup roughly chopped walnuts
- 1 tablespoon salted butter
- 4 cups shredded Brussels sprouts
- 2-3 cups chopped kale
- 1 1/2 cups pomegranate arils
- 1 cup grated manchego cheese
- 1 cup pepitas (optional)
Cinnamon Cider Dressing
- 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 small shallot, chopped
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- kosher salt and black pepper
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 400° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.2. On the baking sheet, toss together the bacon, rosemary, brown sugar, maple, and cayenne. Arrange in an even layer. Bake for 5 minutes, until the bacon is crisping. Add the walnuts and butter, toss to coat. Bake another 8-10 minutes, watching close.3. In a large salad bowl, combine the Brussels sprouts and kale.4. To make the dressing, whisk/shake together all ingredients in a jar. Pour the dressing over the salad and massage into the greens. Add the pomegranates and cheese – toss. 5. Arrange the warm bacon and walnuts over the salad. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Notes
To Make Ahead: the salad can be made up to 1 day ahead. Add the candied bacon before serving.
Leftovers: leftovers will keep well for 2-3 days. This salad is delicious warmed or chilled.
This post was originally published on November 2, 2023
Recipe says the salad can be made a day ahead except the candied bacon. Does this include the dressing as well? Or save dressing for the day it is to be served?
Hi Roseanne,
You can totally make the dressing in advance as well:) Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
Hi, thank you for answering. Sorry I wasn’t clear. Should I dress the salad a day ahead, or the day I am serving? Can’t wait to include this with our traditional Thanksgiving recipes this year. Wishing you and yours a wonderful holiday . 🙂
Thanks so much:) You can dress the salad the day you are serving!
Would this salad be okay without the bacon to make it vegetarian?
Hi Molly,
Of course, that would be just fine for you to do! Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
Looks like you added pepitas seeds too?
Hi Amber,
Yup, the recipe calls for 1 cup of optional pepitas. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
Hello, we are not fans of kale and are wondering what we can substitute for it in this (and other) recipes? It’s so prevalent and we frequently skip over delicious looking recipes because they feature kale. Thank you!
Hi Julie,
Another green that you enjoy like spinach would work well in place of kale. I hope this helps! xx
So so good. Made the recipe as stated and it was the best!
Hi Jennifer,
Happy Wednesday!! So glad to hear that you enjoyed this dish, thanks a lot for trying it out! xT
I love your recipes – so exciting, colorful and unique. I do have a question: no matter how many times or ways I try to print them out, it does not work. Even emailing to myself and trying. Suggestions?
Thanks so much, Marilyn! Sorry to hear you are having issues with printing. Are you using the print button? Are you using Safari or Chrome? What is happening when you try to print? I just tested a couple recipes myself and didn’t have any issues. Please let me know how we can help! xx
I am ready to make this salad and noticed that the brussels sprouts are not cooked. Unfortunately this will not work in my household. Can it be made with the sprouts cooked crisply?
Hi Bette,
Feel free to cook the brussels sprouts to your liking:) I hope you love this recipe! xx
We made this as our contribution to a Friendsgiving and it was a hit! Kept the bacon on the side to accommodate the vegetarians and was a win for all. Will definitely be incorporating this salad into our go to’s! Thanks Tieghan!
Love to hear this Nikkole!! Thanks so much for making this recipe and your feedback! xT
YUM! I made a few subs based on what I had on hand, aged balsamic instead of ACV, real Parmesano Reggiano instead of Manchego, and no kale or orange zest.
I must say this is probably one of my new favorite salads! the sweet/spicy/tangy mix of all the topping SLAPS! I’ll be adding this to my thanksgiving table and will be adding it to my salad rotation!
Hey Abby,
Happy Sunday!! Thanks a bunch for giving this recipe a try, I am so glad to hear that it turned out well for you:)
Hi there! With the recipe calling for kale, does it need to massaged or is there not enough to make that much of a difference? Thanks in advance. Can’t wait to make this!
Hi Nicole,
I didn’t massage the kale in this recipe, but if you feel like your kale is super tough then you can definitely do that! I hope you love this salad! xT
Will be making this for friendsgiving this weekend! How early can I make the bacon/walnut/pepita mix ahead of serving? Trying to prep early!
Hey Chelsea,
You could make the bacon/walnut mix the morning of and then toss in the salad when you are ready to serve! I hope you love this recipe! Happy Friendsgiving! xT
I am planning to make this for thanksgiving (first year hosting for a larger group!) Can the candied bacon/walnuts and dressing be made ahead and stored in the refrigerator a day in advance and then assembled on Thanksgiving? Thank you! I am looking forward to making this.
Hi Christina,
I probably wouldn’t recommend that for this recipe:) You could make them the morning of Thanksgiving and keep them at room temp, I think that would give you the best results! xx
I’m planning on adding this salad to the Thanksgiving menu. It looks delicious! Every year, I make salad featuring roast red beets. We are a smaller group this year so I need to eliminate some menu items. However, many look forward to the roast beets. What do you think about adding them to this salad? I know I can do anything I like, but I’d like another opinion. TIA
Hey Lori,
Roasted beets sound delicious! Thanks for picking this recipe to make this year, I hope everyone loves it! xx
Fantastic salad! I saved myself A LOT of time and took the suggestion from one of my other shaved Brussels sprout recipes and sliced the sprouts (slicing blade, fed through the tube) and the cheese (seperately, changed blade) in my food processor. Perfect! Didn’t add any extra greens because I only needed 2 servings. It’s a beautiful salad with lots of great flavors. Perfect for any holiday or just a week night salad. Thanks T! 🙂
Hey there,
Amazing!! So glad to hear that this recipe was a hit, thanks for making it:) xx
Tried this recipe yesterday as a test run for Thanksgiving, considering replacing the traditional cole slaw for menu. Whilst it does include a decent bit of prep, this salad is worth the effort. The candied bacon and walnuts were the stars. (Thinking it would be neat to serve with charcuterie platter a little bowl of just those.) Went light on the Brussel sprouts, and used kale and radicchio, and sprinkled crumbled blue cheese at end. The presentation is apt for the holidays with the pomegranate seeds as finishing touch. Thank you for all the free recipes, Tieghan. You push me outside of my comfort zone!
Hey Delia,
That’s fantastic to hear! Thanks for trying this dish and your comment, love that it was enjoyed! xT