Pomegranate, Kale and Sweet Potato Salad Recipe

“Fun fact #1 about pomegranates: Pomegranates are awesome.
Fun fact #2: Pomegranates are like little explosions of awesome in your mouth.
Fun fact #3: A lot of people think you’re not supposed to eat the seeds of a pomegranate – but that’s not true, people who tell you that are liars, and they don’t know anything about life, and they should never be trusted.”
~ Tahereh Mafi

This is a tasty and nutritious salad that is also very visually appealing. You could enjoy it on its own, but I chose to serve mine as an accompaniment to roast lamb.

In truth, I’m in the middle of my planning summit, and I wanted an easy dinner that was quick to make. This was a winner on both counts. Plus, my garden is overflowing with kale right now, so I’m afraid it’s kale in EVERYTHING around here. 🙂

I’m quite in love with kale. You can read more about the many health benefits of this awesome leafy green here.

If you don’t have access to kale use spinach leaves or rocket (arugula).

This is also a terrific meal if you have Lyme disease or co-infections as the pomegranate is a great biofilm buster! Food as medicine, and so yummy too. It’s an idea that might catch on…

Ingredients:

3 cups of kale (leaf only – rib removed), seeds from one large pomegranate, 1/2 cup macadamia nut pieces, 1/2 cup of fetta cheese, 2 cups of sweet potato (any variety!) and a little olive oil or coconut oil for roasting.

Oil of your choice to dress salad – I used a lemon-myrtle infused macadamia oil.

Note: For a vegan version substitute the fetta for a vegan cheese or use avocado.

Method:

Preheat oven to moderate (180 degree oven – 350 degrees fahrenheit) and prepare a large tray by lining it with baking paper (Prevents sticking and saves on washing up later.) If you’re already cooking a roast or some other dish in the oven all the better!

Wash and dry the sweet potato and then cut into small chunks. Coat lightly with oil (I chuck all the pieces in a bowl, pour in a slug of oil and massage with my fingers to get the job done) and then place the pieces on your baking-paper lined tray. Place into the oven and cook until golden – about 40 minutes, depending on size of pieces.

De-seed the pomegranate, and wash the arils (seeds) to remove any pith. Drain well and set aside.

Wash and dry the kale leaves and then shred finely with a sharp knife.

Cut or crumble the fetta cheese.

Toast the macadamia nuts over moderate heat in a dry frypan. Push them around with a spoon so that they cook evenly and don’t burn on one side. Watch them while you do this.(Note that some of mine got a bit toasty due to talking too much to Dana and not paying attention to my nuts!).  It only takes a few minutes but it’s worth doing as it gives a beautiful complexity of flavour.

Place the shredded kale in a bowl and dump the hot roasted sweet potato on top.

Tip in the nuts and fetta cheese.

Now add the pomegranate arils. Toss together with a slug of your favourite oil.

Serve and enjoy!

Last night’s dinner. Totally delish. 🙂