This is the best ever healthy Paleo and Whole30 Broccoli and Bacon Salad recipe! Tiny bite-sized pieces of broccoli are tossed with dates, sunflower seeds, red onion, and creamy homemade lemon garlic dressing.
Simple Recipes = The Best Recipes
The more I cook, or maybe it’s just the older I get, the more I appreciate ingredients and flavors that are uncomplicated.
It’s usually the simplest recipes that are the most impressive to me, so simple, healthy salads have been kind of my jam lately. And this healthy broccoli salad is awesome!
We love it as a holiday side dish or to bring along to cookouts!
Healthy Broccoli Salad
This salad is tossed with a creamy homemade lemon garlic dressing that’s definitely ultra simple and super flavorful! It hits all the crave-worthy points I think every salad should have.
Every salad should have something sweet, salty, creamy, and crunchy. Don’t you think?
Best of all, this recipe is 100% Whole30, Paleo, Gluten Free, and can be easily made Keto and Low Carb, too!
Recipe Ingredients
- Broccoli (raw or blanched)
- Sugar Free Bacon: My favorite Whole30 compliant bacon is Naked Bacon, because it’s really, really, unbelievably delicious. HIGHLY recommend.
- Dates and/or Dried Cranberries
- Sunflower Seeds
- Red Onion
Keto / Low Carb Recipe Variation:
Omit the dates and cranberries. You can substitute fresh or dried blueberries if you’d like or just leave them off the salad completely.
Vegetarian Variation
Simply omit the bacon and substitute vegetarian mayo. You can include mushroom or coconut bacon, if you’d like, or just leave it out completely. Either way will be totally delish!
Lemon Garlic Dressing Ingredients
- Mayo
- Mustard
- Garlic
- Lemon Juice
- Apple Cider Vinegar
- Salt & Pepper
Making the Recipe
The steps to making this recipe are super, super simple. You’ll spend most of your time prepping the ingredients, but then all you need to do is toss it together and serve!
Simply cook the bacon, and chop the raw broccoli, onion, fruit, and cooked bacon. Whisk together the salad dressing ingredients, and dress the salad just before serving.
Blanched Broccoli vs. Raw Broccoli
Personally, I prefer teensy tiny pieces of raw broccoli in this salad for a ton of crunch, but many people prefer to blanch the broccoli. Blanching refers to quickly submerging the vegetable in boiling water.
How to Blanche Broccoli:
- Boil a large pot of salted water
- Gently place the pieces of bite-sized broccoli into the boiling water
- Cook for about 1 minute, or just until bright green.
- Remove the broccoli and set in an ice bath until cooled
- Drain the water and pat the broccoli dry
To make it in advance
I’m always into make-ahead meals, and this salad is no exception. You can definitely prepare this healthy broccoli salad in advance, but I’d recommend waiting until just before serving to toss it with the dressing.
Pin it for Later:
If you liked this recipe, be sure to check out some of the other healthy and delicious salad recipes on my blog, like my:
- Harvest Grilled Chicken Salad
- Zucchini Caprese Salad
- Cauliflower Tabbouleh
- Chicken & Bacon Caesar Salad
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Broccoli and Bacon Salad (Whole30, with Keto and Vegetarian Options)
Ingredients
Broccoli & Bacon Salad
- 4-5 cups broccoli florets about two heads
- 8 oz bacon, cooked
- ½ cup any mixture of dried cranberries and dates, or if you can't find them, you can substitute or include dried apricots (they're usually sugar-free)⠀
- ½ cup roasted and unsalted sunflower seeds⠀
- 1/2 red onion
Lemon Garlic Dressing
- 1/2 cup compliant mayo⠀
- 2/3 tsp. mustard⠀
- 1 clove garlic
- 2 tsp. apple cider vinegar, preferably raw
- ½ lemon, juiced
- salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
Lemon Garlic Dressing
- Grate or finely mince the garlic, then whisk together all the salad dressing ingredients in a small bowl.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste, adding a touch more lemon juice to thin to desired consistency, if needed.
Broccoli & Bacon Salad
- Remove the stems from the broccoli and chop into bite sized pieces.
- Thinly slice the red onion and roughly chop any larger pieces of dried fruit.
- Just before serving, mix all salad ingredients together and toss with dressing. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper
Notes
- Boil a large pot of salted water
- Gently place the pieces of bite-sized broccoli into the boiling water
- Cook for about 1 minute, or just until bright green.
- Remove the broccoli and set in an ice bath until cooled
- Drain the water and pat the broccoli dry
