Super Food Salad

Disclaimer: This post isn’t sponsored by Chick-Fil-A, I’m just a crazy fan of their Super Food Salad so I developed a recipe for myself that is close enough for me not to tell a difference if my eyes were closed.

My daughter’s favorite place to eat in the world, aside from our home, is Chick-Fil-A. We usually eat there on the night she has choir practice since that is a night the entire family seems to be scattered to the winds.

So when they switch up their menu, I have a chance to check out the new stuff pretty soon after it’s debut. The latest craze is their Super Food Salad and let me tell you what, it was love at first bite. I could live on that stuff! So you know I had to have a go at duplicating the recipe at home. I want to be clear, right out of the gate, that this isn’t Chick-Fil-A’s recipe. I have never seen their recipe and I just developed my recipe from the ground up based on the menu description. However, to my tastebuds, they are twins, maybe not absolutely identical, but twins just the same.

So if you are in love with the superfood salad they serve there like I am, here is how you can make it at home on those days where you may not be heading in the general direction of Chick-Fil-A but you still have a need that deserves to be filled.

Oh and this, this is another reason why I am so familiar with their menu du jour…

We’ve started calling this “Chicken School” on the days we take our homeschool to Chick Fil a 🙂 #chickfila #eatmorechicken #homeschooling

A photo posted by Christy Jordan’s SouthernPlate (@southernplate) on Dec 10, 2014 at 2:18pm PST

We also have what we call “Chicken School” from time to time where I pack up our homeschool materials and we find us a booth at the local chick fil a for breakfast. After breakfast, we start on our school work and finish up around lunchtime, which we then have there (of course) before heading back home. The fun thing about Chicken School is how welcoming our local Chick-Fil-A spot is. They refill our drinks while we work, ask if there is anything else we need, and tell us to let them know if we do. The crazy thing is that Katy enjoys it so much that she hasn’t noticed we get twice as much work done on those days!

For the salad part, you’ll need Kale, broccoli, sunflower kernels*, and dried cherries.

*Chick-Fil-A does NOT use sunflower kernels. They use a roasted nut blend which seems to be almonds, pecans, and walnuts, but you don’t see a lot of those and I wanted more nuts throughout, plus sunflower kernels are cheap :).

I was so tempted to add in matchstick carrots, shredded cabbage, etc, but decided to keep it simple and try to stick as close as I could (aside from the nuts) to how Chick-Fil-A does it. I’m glad I did because this salad is stinking awesome.

Also worth noting is that Chick-Fil-A uses broccolini. I had to look that up. Sounded like baby broccoli with aspirations or something. Turns out it is some Italian broccoli with smaller florets and larger seeds. Either way, to me it was just another veggie putting on airs so I settled for plain old broccoli, already in a bag, already cut. And you see that big old bag of Kale? It was already cut, too, and cost me less than $3. There was enough to make this salad twice. If you decide to make one serving and save the rest of the Kale, just put it in a zipper seal bag with one paper towel and store in your fridge. That paper towel in there will keep it fresh and crispy for twice as long. Works for lettuce and such, too.

For the dressing you’ll need: apple cider vinegar, maple syrup, olive oil, salt, and pepper.

Now y’all, I’m using my famous Maple Syrup from Ginter’s Corner Tap N’ Sap again. You may recall how I fantasized about getting my daughter married into their Maple Syrup Dynasty over in my Maple Pecan Pie Post. I’m still working on that…

The big old mason jar contains my dressing ingredients. I’m about to put a lid on it and give it a good, hearty shake. If your kids walk in while you are doing this open your eyes real big and growl while shaking it. They will scatter to the winds until you call them back into the kitchen for supper and you’ll have a little “me” time :).

Lookie thar. All shook up. Just like Elvis!

Oh look, there’s Brady! You don’t see him around on SouthernPlate much these days so when I was taking photos and he leaned in for a bomb it felt like a rare treat for me. I’m hoping you’ll see more of him after this school year as he’s decided to join us at home, customize his studies (more programming and pre engineering classes), and finish up high school with an advanced degree in one year rather than two. It’s amazing what you can do when you don’t have to stay behind a pace car, just another reason why I love homeschooling :).

Disclaimer for the people o’ the internets: No insult is intended towards anyone who doesn’t homeschool or any schools, public or private, that currently come to the mind of whoever is reading this. Please note that it is possible to say something that compliments a choice without it being a statement degrading a different choice. Just like saying someone is pretty is not saying the rest of the world is ugly. If you find yourself offended, please click here and read this post. Now let us get back to the food part…

Put all your stuff in a bowl. Pour dressing over. Stir it up real good. Eat it real good. Enjoy!

Store this in the refrigerator, covered. Best if enjoyed within the first two days of being made.

So how did it turn out? Well, it’s gone and no one helped me eat it :).

I love this stuff and can see myself making it weekly, especially since it is so easy.

To my tastebuds, I hit the mark with this recipe – but that’s not saying I won’t spin through the drive through to get my fix should the need arise.

If you have a Chick-Fil-A near you, I highly recommend this side dish with your next meal! If you want to be like me when you grow up (we’ll discuss your misguided aspirations later), you can order a plain grilled chicken sandwich, superfood salad, and a large Diet Dr Pepper. Be sure and ask for a pack of ketchup and put that on your sandwich because that is how I roll!

Super Food Salad

This recipe is forgivable and easily customized. Add more of whatever you like and less of whatever you don't.

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Prep Time: 40 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Course: Salad

Cuisine: American

Keyword: salad

Servings: 4 about 12 cups

Calories: 386kcal

Author: Christy Jordan

Ingredients

• About 8 cups chopped kale
• About 2-3 cups broccoli florets
• 1/2 cup sunflower kernels
• 1/2 cup dried cherries
• 1/2 cup cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 5 tablespoons good quality maple syrup
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Instructions

• Place kale, broccoli, sunflower kernels, and dried cherries in a very large bowl. Set aside.
• In mason jar, add vinegar, oil, maple syrup, salt, and pepper. Put lid on and shake really well, until combined.
• Pour over kale mixture and stir to coat. Store, covered, in the refrigerator, for up to two days.

Nutrition

Calories: 386kcal

Tried this recipe?Mention @southernplate or tag #southernplate!

Don’t worry about the people who aren’t happy for you.

They probably aren’t happy for themselves, either. 

~Unknown