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This Kale Caesar Salad with Sweet Potatoes and Crispy Chickpeas is not your average salad. Sweet potatoes and chickpeas tossed with olive oil, smoky chipotle, and paprika, then roasted until lightly charred, crispy, and delicious. Everything is tossed together with a creamy, lemony parmesan tahini dressing, hearty winter kale, shredded brussels sprouts, and avocado. This salad is easy to throw together, colorful, healthy, and filling. Enjoy this for dinner and save the leftovers for lunch the next day. It’s the perfect wintry salad to kick-start clean eating in 2020.
By now I think you all know how I feel about salad. I despise a boring salad (i.e lettuce and very little else). But I LOVE a GOOD salad (i.e one with greens…carbs and cheese). And if it’s a salad with warm roasted vegetables…well, that scores major bonus points with me. Enter this kale Caesar salad, it’s everything you could ever want a winter salad to be. It has texture, color, a mix of warm roasted vegetables, fresh greens, cheese, and the best creamiest dressing.
And yes, it’s still healthy and so perfect for January.
I’ve been excited to share this salad since the day I first made it…all the way back before Christmas. We’re slowly getting to the end of the recipes I made while my family was in town for the holidays. This salad was inspired by every member of my family…with the exclusion of four of my brothers, of course. Those boys don’t love salad of any kind, so I made this recipe mostly with the girls of the family in mind. I knew everyone (myself included) would devour this recipe in minutes. It’s all the things we love.
The salad details.
Start by roasting up the sweet potatoes and getting the chickpeas extra crispy.
I tossed the potatoes with spicy chipotle powder and smoky paprika for a sweet and spicy flavor. I love this combination of sweet potatoes and spicy, smoky chipotle. But if you prefer a less spicy salad, simply reduce the amount of chili powder or omit it all together. You’ll want to give the potatoes a head start on cooking since they take longer than the chickpeas, but once the potatoes have softened a bit, add the chickpeas right to the same baking sheet and roast until crispy.
The chickpeas end up soaking up some of the spices from the potatoes causing them to come out perfectly seasoned and extra crisp.
While the sweet potatoes and chickpeas roast, toss the salad together. It’s a simple mix of shredded kale and finely shredded brussels sprouts. I love using hearty kale and shredded spouts for winter salads. Not only do they hold up incredibly well to dressings (making them perfect for meal prepping), but they feel heartier. The salad ends up being more filling than your typical green salad.
If you don’t love brussels sprouts, you can just use all kale. Either way, the salad will still be great.
Now, on to that creamy parmesan dressing…
It’s truly one of my favorite dressings…bold statement, but true.
The classic Caesar dressing contains anchovies and raw egg yolk, but this dressing has none of that. I know that technically this is really not a Caesar salad, but hear me out. The flavors are spot on…better if you ask me.
So what’s the key? A combination of creamy tahini (sesame seed paste), Dijon mustard, and a few dashes of Worcestershire sauce (did you know that one of the main ingredients in Worcestershire is anchovies?). The tahini adds the creaminess that the raw egg yolk would add, while the Dijon and Worcestershire sauce add all the savory, salty flavors that the anchovies would add. Promise, it’s just as delicious…better actually.
Bonus? No raw eggs means you don’t have to worry about any kind of stomach issues while enjoying this Caesar. I know from experience how not-fun it is to eat a Caesar salad that’s delicious going down…but not so delicious coming back up. Yes, been there, done that.
Meal prepping?
This is your salad! The kale and sprouts hold up wonderfully once this salad has been tossed, I’d say a good day or two. If you want to make the salad last even longer, leave the dressing off, then add just before serving.
The vegetables can be roasted a few days ahead of time and eaten chilled or warmed. Either is great, but you know I love them warm.
As I mentioned, this is not your average Caesar salad. In fact, some of you may argue that this is not a Caesar salad at all since the dressing does not include raw egg yolk or anchovies. Trust me, I debated calling this a Caesar, but in the end, I found the favors to be so similar. So I’m sticking with it.
It’s surely not a classic Caesar, but it surely is delicious. Which is what’s most important in my book…so ENJOY.
Looking for other winter salads? Try my winter pomegranate salad or my super green sun-dried tomato herb salad.
If you make this kale Caesar salad with sweet potatoes and chickpeas, 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!
Watch the How To Video:
Kale Caesar Salad with Sweet Potatoes and Crispy Chickpeas
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 515 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
- 2 small sweet potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch circles
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1-2 teaspoons chipotle chili powder, use to your taste
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 1 (14 ounce) can chickpeas, drained
- 1 large head kale, shredded
- 4 cups shredded brussels sprouts, or 1 additional head of kale
- 1-2 avocados, sliced
Parmesan Tahini Dressing
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- juice of 2 lemons
- 2 tablespoons dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons tahini
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1-2 cloves garlic, grated
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 1/3 cup grated parmesan, plus more for serving
- 2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
Instructions
- 1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.2. On a large rimmed baking sheet, combine the sweet potatoes, 2 tablespoons olive oil, chili powder, paprika, and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Toss well to evenly coat. Transfer to the oven and roast for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven, add the chickpeas and remaining oil. Toss with the sweet potatoes and return to the oven for another 20 minutes, until the chickpeas are crisp and the sweet potatoes tender.3. Meanwhile, in a large salad bowl, combine the kale and brussels sprouts. 4. To make the dressing. Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper.5. Toss the roasted sweet potatoes and chickpeas in with the salad. Add the dressing and toss to combine. Top the salad with avocado and additional parmesan. Serve and enjoy! The salad keeps well for 3-4 days in the fridge, add the avocados just before serving.
This post was originally published on January 9, 2020
Made this recipe last night and HOLY MOLY it was delicious! Added some bacon for my veggie-averse boyfriend and he went back for thirds! The dressing was perfection and not so tahini-y like I thought it might be. Consider me a salad convert.
Hi Deborah! YES!! So glad this one turned out so well for you! Thank you! xTieghan
I absolutely loved this salad. Made it last week, and it lasted 3 days. I’m about to make it again this week, because it is a super easy weeknight meal – also keeps well for lunch at work. I consider myself a Caesar salad connoisseur – has always been a comfort food for me, and this dressing was divine. Pro tip – buy shaved brussels in a bag… I chopped my own last week and that was a huge amount of time, but definitely use them because it’s a super nice texture change from the Kale!!
Hi Catherine! I am really glad this turned out so well for you! Thank you for trying it! xTieghan
Loved this! Even my husband was a fan and he admitted after dinner that he had been skeptical about how hearty a salad-for-dinner would be without any meat… Then he asked me to add it into our regular meal rotation! My 4-year-old loved the sweet potatoes and my 18-month-old loved the chickpeas! (I loved the balance of everything…I also added in some Sun-dried tomatoes which were great.) It was a winner all around!
Ok yes that is so amazing!! I am really glad you all enjoyed this recipe, Briar! Thank you!! xTieghan
Tried out this recipe and all I can say is this salad is absolutely packed with flavour and so so simple to make! Would 100% recommend to anyone who is contemplating trying it!
Thank you so much Hillary! I am so glad this turned out so well for you! xTieghan
Everything Tieghan makes is phenomenal! I threw in capers instead of Worcestershire and it was super delicious. Gives the salty ocean taste of anchovies if you don’t have the sauce on hand!
Thank you so much Kira! I am so glad you enjoyed this! xTieghan
This was SO, so delicious. I’ve tried a bunch of homemade Caesar dressings and this is the winner by a long shot. Adding to my salad rotation for sure. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you so much Aishling! I am so glad this turned out so well for you! xTieghan
This is fantastic! Such a quick yet delicious meal. I’ll definitely be making this again – thanks!
Thank you so much Claire! I am so glad this turned out so well for you! xTieghan
Incredible! My husband and I devoured this… and then licked the dressing bowl clean. This is by far the best Caesar dressing I’ve ever had. Definitely my new go-to salad!
Wow yes!! That is so amazing! Thank you Traci! xTieghan
This salad is now part of my regular meal prep. Everything comes together so nicely with a good mix of healthy ingredients, and the prep is incredibly easy. Bonus because I never feel hungry after eating this (as I do with most other salads). The dressing is amazing so I’ll be repurposing it for other recipes as well!
That is a huge bonus! I am so glad you have been loving this recipe, Kasmira! I hope you continue to love others of mine as well! xTieghan
Good salad! I have to say, though, that I am starting to triple the amount of prep time listed on the recipe to be more accurate. This is a pretty simple recipe, but just to do the components from start to finish definitely takes more than 15 minutes! Delicious flavors, though, as usual for hbh!
Hi Lauren! I am so glad you enjoyed this salad! I am sorry about the timing, it is hard for me to know how long it will take each individual person! xTieghan
Can I make this dressing without the cheese?
Hi there! Sure! That is fine! Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you!! xTieghan
I am not a salad person and I’m here to say that this is freaking DELICIOUS. The dressing is unbelievable- I had no idea you could get such a creamy texture without anything egg or dairy. Just YUM.
Thank you so much Paige!! I am so glad you tried and enjoyed this! xTieghan
This dressing is absolutely delicious. I opted to leave the parmesan out so it’s dairy free. Thank you for an easy plus yummy recipe. Everything you make looks like a masterpiece. I look forward to trying more,
Thank you so much Tracy! I am so glad this turned out so well for you! xTieghan
Loved this recipe! The dressing was awesome. I am not a kale fan, so I subbed mixed baby greens to add to the shaved Brussels. Easy peasy meal, light on the clean up. Even made extras to carry over for lunch the next day. My meat and potato hubby was happy and my 11 yr old pescatarian did too!
That is so amazing!! I am really glad you all enjoyed this recipe Acey! Thank you! xTieghan
This salad is SO GOOD! The flavors are perfect together and not to mention it looked just as pretty when I made it as it did in your pictures. You are so talented!!
Thank you so much Ena! xTieghan