Sheet Pan Salad
← Recipes
Friday, February 17, 2023

inspired by Food52
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes, cut into thin wedges - about ¼-inch thick
- Salt & pepper, to preference
- 1 16-oz. can /1.5 cups chickpeas, rinsed and drained
- red onion, cut into thick chunks
- ⅓ cup sliced almonds
- 1 bunch of kale, stems discarded, leaves ripped to size preference
- ¼ cup sharp cheese, cut into thin chunks or shredded
- 1 apple, halved, cored, and cut into 1/8-inch slices
Balsamic dressing (this will make more than you need, but it’s an excellent thing to have on hand - refrigerate unused!)
- 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
- Salt & pepper, to preference
- Dijon mustard, to preference
Directions
- Heat oven to 425° F & place a sheet pan in the oven immediately. We want a hot pan!
- Mix vinaigrette real well. Putting it into something you can shake seems easiest. (Of course, if you already have some sort of balsamic vinaigrette in your fridge - use that! The above is my standard)
- In a large bowl, toss sweet potatoes wedges with salt and 2 tablespoons vinaigrette.
- In a separate bowl, toss chickpeas and red onion with a pinch of salt and 1 tablespoon vinaigrette.
- When oven is ready, remove sheet pan and distribute the sweet potatoes in a single, even layer. You want them to have contact with the sheet pan for better browning.
- Add the chickpeas and onions to the sheet pan, nestling them amongst the sweet potatoes.
- Roast for about 25 to 30 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes are just tender.
- Add the almonds, and continue roasting for another 5 to 7 minutes, or until the almonds are lightly toasted.
- Meanwhile, rinse out the large bowl that held the sweet potatoes; add the kale. Using your hands, toss the kale with 1 to 2 tablespoons vinaigrette (or as much as needed to lightly, evenly dress the kale), salt, and pepper.
- Take the sheet pan out and sprinkle the kale on top.
- Bake for 5 minutes.
- Take the sheet pan out and add the cheese and apple. Toss with extra vinaigrette if needed, and adjust seasoning and acidity to taste.
Thoughts
I make this a lot in the fall & winter. It’s easy. It’s mostly pantry/storage crops. It’s warm. It’s healthy. It’s delicious. I’ve made variations with different veggies and/or replacing the beans and cheese with 1/2 lb. ground sausage. All are good. I think the main thing you should get from this is that sheet pan meals are glorious. They can be an easy opportunity to get some greens in a meal, too, beyond my typical “roast veggies with olive oil, salt, and pepper” trick for cooking veggies.