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Broccoli, pecans, cranberries, carrots and apples come together to make an amazing salad with delicious flavors and textures. The creamy dressing on top makes this salad absolutely incredible!
Broccoli is amazing in salads, it adds crunch, nutrition and flavor. Some of the best salads with broccoli in them include Broccoli Cauliflower, Greek Broccoli Pasta and this incredible Bacon Ranch Pasta salad.
Easy Broccoli Apple Salad
Broccoli in salads is my favorite. I especially love this Broccoli Cashew Salad that is on the blog. But this Broccoli Apple Salad became an instant favorite! As I was eating it, I just couldn’t get enough! I knew this salad would be amazing but I wasn’t expecting it to become a new favorite! SO many delicious new textures and flavors in this salad. The broccoli, carrots, and red onion, was followed by the sweetness of the apples and dried cranberries. The pecans added another yummy flavor and crunch. The creamy dressing on top was THEE best. It completed this fresh and delicious salad perfectly. I know that if you make this salad, it will become an instant favorite as well!
At first you might think that broccoli and apples don’t go together, but they do, trust me. This is truly one of the best salads out there. It’s healthy, full of flavor and the dressing is even light. I traded out some of the mayonnaise for greek yogurt, giving you a boost of calcium, protein and cutting the fat. All without compromising on taste and tang. It’s going to be a new go to salad for sure!
Ingredients for Broccoli and Apple Salad
Full of fresh crunchy ingredients, this salad is truly satisfying and filling. You are going to love all the vegetables and the tangy dressing.
- Fresh Broccoli Florets: About 2 medium heads
- Shredded Carrots: You can sometimes find pre shredded carrots in the produce section
- Red Onion: Adds a bit of spice and tons of flavor.
- Apples: 2 large apples will work, pick sweet ones not tart or sour. I used Gala
- Pecans: Coarsely chopped
- Dried Cranberries: Perfect bit sweetness and tartness
Creamy Dressing Ingredients
- Light Mayonnaise: Creates the base of the dressing
- Low Fat Greek Yogurt: Gives it more creaminess and a nice bit of tang
- Lemon Juice: Adds a bit of tartness, and helps keep the apples fresh looking
- Sugar: Balances out the tart with a bit of sweet
- Salt and Pepper: Add more or less as desired.
How to Make Broccoli Salad with Apples
Chopping all the ingredients for this insanely delicious broccoli apple salad is the longest part of throwing this together. But it is so worth it. Add the flavors meld so perfectly together, it’s so good!
- Combine: In a large bowl combine broccoli, carrots, red onion, apples, pecans, and dried cranberries
- To make the dressing: Whisk together mayonnaise, greek yogurt, lemon juice, sugar, salt and pepper.
- Add: the dressing to the salad and toss to coat. Chill until ready to serve.
Why This Recipe Needs to be Made Today!
Besides being extremely delicious this broccoli apple salad has so many pros to it, you will truly want to keep this recipe close by.
- Nutritious: Packed with vegetables and fruit and even nuts, this broccoli salad is an immune boosting, fiber enhancing delicious dish. This salad is high in vitamin C, K and A plus it’s high in fiber. Pecans add protein and a healthy fat. Even though you have mayonnaise in the dressing, it’s such a big salad that the amount you’ll actually ingest is just little. Unless you eat the whole thing, which I wouldn’t blame you. It’s extremely diet friendly.
- Make Ahead: This broccoli apple salad actually tastes better if it sits for at least an hour. The flavors and the dressing all meld together in the most fantastic way. This non lettuce salad is full of hearty ingredients so this will stand up to being made ahead of time beautifully. It’s a great choice for packing in lunches, taking to potlucks, and having as leftovers. Make it ahead of time and free up time for making other dishes before dinner.
- Colorful: It’s been said we should eat the rainbow! Well, this broccoli apple salad is definitely a rainbow of colors! It’s as fun to look at as it is too eat! Not only isn’t appealing to the eyes, but to the tastebuds too! It’ll be a salad that gets eaten first at your next picnic
- Hearty and Satisfying: This salad is packed with nutritious ingredients that will not only taste good, but fill you up. The crunchiness satisfies your desire to chew and the high fiber will fill up your tummy!
Tips and Variations for Creamy Broccoli Apple Salad
This salad is delicious as a side dish for beef, fried chicken or even salmon. Or make it a highlight in a light meal served with a refreshing fruit salad and some breadsticks. Yummy!
- Make it Easy: You can make the prep for this salad even easier by buying pre shredded carrots, and pre cut broccoli florets.
- Substitute Dried Cranberries: Use raisins, golden raisins, or dried cherries instead of the cranberries if you wish.
- Nuts: Try using walnuts or cashews instead of pecans. Also try toasting them in a pan on the stovetop till fragrant and slightly browned for added flavor.
- Cheese: For a twist add blue cheese to the broccoli apple salad which adds incredible flavor.
- Apples: I used gala apples in this recipe. You want an apple on the sweeter side. Try Fuji or Braeburn as well for excellent results.
How to Store Apple Broccoli Salad
Broccoli Apple Salad keeps great for up to 3 days before it will start to really get soggy. It’ll still be good for another 2-3 days after, but the quality of the vegetables and fruit will decrease rapidly. If you plan to eat it all week long, try dividing the salad in half and only add dressing to the half you are eating up first. It will help keep the sogginess at bay.
More Broccoli Loving Recipes To Try
Broccoli is good for you, we all know that! I love it, but not everyone does. Sometimes we have to drown it in amazing cheese sauce or ranch dressing to get our kids or loved ones to eat it. Well, these recipes are tried and true and absolute favorites! So if you’re trying to get more good for you broccoli in your family’s diet, try one or all of these recipes! You won’t regret it!
- The Best Broccoli Cheese Soup
- Garlic Beef and Broccoli Noodles
- Slow Cooker Creamy Chicken and Broccoli over Rice
- 20 Min Beef and Broccoli Lo Mein
- Three Cheese Chicken Broccoli Alfredo
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Broccoli Apple Salad
Ingredients
- 4 cups fresh broccoli florets (about 2 medium heads)
- 1/2 cup shredded carrots
- 1/4 cup diced red onion
- 2 large apples finely chopped (I used gala apples)
- 1/2 cup pecans coarsely chopped
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
Creamy dressing ingredients:
- 1/2 cup lite mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup low fat greek yogurt
- 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 Tablespoon sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- In a large bowl combine broccoli, carrots, red onion, apples, pecans, and dried cranberries.
- Whisk together mayonnaise, greek yogurt, lemon juice, sugar, salt and pepper.
- Add the dressing to the salad and toss to coat. Chill until ready to serve.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Just absolutely great ,! Cannot t wait for more recipes!
I think I’ll try this substituting granular stevia for the sugar to add that bit of sweetness, sounds delicious!
Can frozen broccoli be used or will it be soft when thawed?
Fresh would be best.
What can you use in place of the fat-free yogurt??
Is it okay if i eat without chill?
My review is just for the dressing. It was amazing! I made a pasta salad with broccoli, red pepper, red onion and ham with this dressing, It was seriously the best pasta salad I’ve ever made. I know I owe it to the dressing. Thanks for sharing!
That is great to hear!! Thanks so much for sharing!! XOXO
I am trying this tonight with Grilled chicken. I am going to try dried blueberries and pineapple as well as the apples. I think I am going to use vanilla yogurt and eliminate the sugar as well as decreasing the lemon juice by tossing with the apples prior to adding to the other ingredients
MMM! That sounds delicious! It is a great salad! My kids even love the tastes of it all and forget it is covered in broccoli! Enjoy it! XOXO
I absolutely love this salad. I make it all the time. I would like to know the nutritional value if possible please.
That is great to hear!! This is one of my favorites too! At this time I do not have any nutritional information for my recipes. I do recommend using myfitnesspal.com or an app that you prefer to look up the recipes. Hope that helps!!
Great salad. I did roast the broccoli 5 mins at 425 degrees. Just to take a little of the rawness out of the broccoli but still have a crunch. Let it cool and mixed everything together as directed. I did used lemon zest since i hate to waste it. I also used walnuts. Very good salad. I recommend to try it!
That ALL sounds great! Thanks for sharing your version! I love to hear people mix things up a bit! Xo
Your Recipe Critic,
Alyssa
Looks yummy! I think I’ll try it soon!
This looks so inviting and refreshing! My three men (husband and two sons, 17 & 19) are all good salad eaters, but don’t often like “sweet” salads (with nuts or dried fruit). I’m going to try this one this week.
The other two broccoli salad recipes also look really delicious, and include BACON! (What’s not to love?) We go to a pot-luck often where once in awhile where the group does a bacon theme just for fun. Well, there’s one coming up and one of your salads will attend with me.
Thanks for some beautiful and interesting recipes. 🙂
I TRIED TO RATE THIS RECIPE AS A (5-STAR) BUT IT WOULD NOT LET ME!! I EVEN TRIED IT A SECOND TIME!…
SORRY… 🙁 >>> *** I RATE THIS RECIPE A (((( 5-STAR))))*** <<<
LOOKS ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS!!… WILL BE MAKING THIS SOON!!… I LOVE APPLES IN SALADS, AND ALSO IN HOMEMADE COLESLAW!… TODAY I HAD THE CRANBERRY SAUCE/WITH THE BERRIES, AND ADDED IT TO MY COLESLAW… LOVED IT! I LOVE TO EXPERIMENT WITH FOODS, AND HAVE CAME UP WITH SOME REALLY GOOD DISHES OVER THE YEARS. ( I WILL BE 70 YRS. OLD IN APRIL!)… THANK YOU AND GOD BLESS FOR THE RECIPES,,, SHARED IT ON MY TIMELINE, OF COURSE ADD YOUR REGULAR POST WITH YOUR NAME ALSO!!…. MARYJO
/ Made today and a winner with everyone at Our Bar-b- Q it sure is a make again !!!!
What can I use instead of mayo in the dressing?
If it is an allergy issue, I highly recommend Just Mayo by Hampton Creek. It’s better than regular mayo and it contains no egg or dairy. You can buy it at Walmart and Target.
Is there something I can use instead of mayo or Miracle Whip in the dressing?