If you’ve ever had Whole Foods Broccoli salad you will love our lightened up version. It still has the crunchy broccoli, dried cranberries, slivered almonds, red onion and bacon, but the dressing is much lighter with no added sugar!
With all the summer salads floating around at family and company picnics this summer, you probably think you’re making the healthier choice by picking up the broccoli salad instead of the macaroni salad, right?
Don’t get me wrong, there is certainly a place at the table for macaroni and potato salads but there’s just something addictive about broccoli salad that has people coming back for seconds.
Unfortunately, most broccoli salads are drowning in a sugary, creamy based dressing and have about a pound (or more) of bacon in them! The traditional broccoli salad you might find at Whole Foods for example, can still be around 250 calories per serving.
So how do we make this classic salad a little healthier?
How to Make a HEALTHIER Broccoli Salad
- We used a combination of whole organic Greek yogurt and mayo as the salad dressings base instead of just full fat mayo. This helped to cut back on the calories, fat and GMOs. 2% or 0% will be your best choice to keep the fat low.
- We also used honey as a sweetener instead of regular sugar.
- Instead of the classic raisins we decided to change things up and added dried cranberries to compliment the red onion and yogurt.
So what’s in our dressing that makes it so good?
- Whole Greek Yogurt – gives it a little tang, thins out the dressing and substitutes the mayo.
- Mayonnaise – just a little for that traditional flavor and body
- Apple Cider Vinegar – acid is necessary for balance
- Honey – a great substitute for sugar
- Dijon Mustard – not the grainy kind
- Sea Salt and pepper
How do I get rid of the raw broccoli taste and get that bright green color?
Do you know how stores get their broccoli so bright and green? They blanch it in boiling water for 1 minute and then quickly submerged it in ice water. This takes that bitter taste out and turns the broccoli this beautiful green.
Is this step absolutely necessary? No. Some people get along just fine with raw broccoli, I just prefer to blanch mine first. It’s also easier on the gut when it’s blanched.
PRO CHEF TIP:
If you are making this salad for an event, or even for dinner, it would be best to make it at least the day before. The longer the broccoli salad sits the more the flavors blend together. Stir it every so often and serve it SUPER cold !!
MORE SUMMER SALAD RECIPES:
If you love this salad, and are looking for some of my go-tos, then check out some of these:
Be sure to follow me on Facebook and Pinterest and if you’ve had a chance to make this delicious salad, then definitely leave me a comment and a rating below!
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Healthy Broccoli Cranberry Almond Salad
- Total Time: 15 min
- Yield: 6 Servings 1x
Description
A lightened up version of a fun and brightly colored summer broccoli salad with Greek yogurt, mayo, honey as a sweetener, almonds, red onions and dried cranberries.
Ingredients
FOR THE DRESSING:
- 3 Tablespoons Whole Greek Yogurt
- ⅓ Cup Mayonaise
- 1 Tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1 Tablespoon Honey
- ½ teaspoon Dijon Mustard
- ¼ teaspoon Sea Salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
FOR THE SALAD:
- 4 Cups Broccoli Florets (I got mine at Costco)
- ¼ Cup Red Onion, chopped
- ⅓ Cup Slivered Almonds, (toasted for 3–4 min at 350 if possible)
- ⅓ Cup Dried Cranberries
- ¼ Cup Unsalted Sunflower Seeds
- 3 Bacon slices, cooked and crumbled
Instructions
- Chop up the red onion and then place in a small bowl of cold water for 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, combine the ingredients to make the dressing and stir using a whisk and set aside
- In a larger bowl, combine the ingredients for the salad. Drain the onion and add. Pour the dressing on top
- Cover and chill at least 1 hour before serving, although overnight is best
Notes
Calories- 154; Sugar 9.8 mg; Sodium 125 mg; Fat 10 gr; Carbs 12 gr; Fiber 2.3 gr; Protein 3.8 gr
- Prep Time: 15 min
- Cook Time: 0 min
Our family loves this broccoli salad, especially straight from the fridge when it’s ice cold.
★★★★★
I’ve made this twice now in 2 weeks. Thank you!
★★★★★
This is probably my favorite salad on the planet. I love the dressing in this. The yogurt adds such a nice sweetness and it cuts back on that heavy mayo feeling.
★★★★★
I LOVE this salad, it’s my favourite by far. The only thing I don’t do is add red onion as I’m not a fan, love adding some walnuts for the crunch. Absolutely beautiful and I feel like as it’s so tasty I’m eating tonnes of calories but not at all! Thank you
★★★★★
I agree with you Jess. This is one of my favorite salads. I’m not a fan of red onion either, but once I submerge it into some ice water for a minute or two it’s not bad and I actually like it.
I’m thinking about trying this BUT without the mayo and using Creme Fraiche instead along with the greek yogurt. I personally don’t think it needs a sweetener if you use dried cranberries that are already soaked in apple juice as well as adding some dried blueberries. I’m vegetarian so I’d have to leave out the bacon. How about adding some diced roasted sweet potato? Gees, I’m coming up with the substitutes and making a completely different version! Yikes!!!
Hi Deb am really in love with Whole Foods broccoli salad with their rotisserie organic chicken, been so busy never really try to make the salad ,since Whole Foods is on my way home
is this plain greek yogurt or vanilla? I can only find the vanilla flavor from stony field at my local grocer. Thanks!
Hi Deb … I like ur name 🙂 I used plain but I don’t think a little vanilla will hurt it at all