An incredibly delicious sweet kale salad recipe with cranberries, almonds, and a creamy homemade greek yogurt dressing. Healthier than Costco’s bagged salad, and super easy to make! You can even use homemade dried cranberries and homemade greek yogurt.
Have you ever had a bagged salad that was just SO good, that you couldn’t help but keep buying it? I used to do this with the Sweet Kale Salad from Costco. I normally don’t buy bagged salad (because of the unhealthy dressing ingredients), but I caved with this kale salad.
It was great as leftovers, like my winter wedge salad is too. But it was not great on my wallet. One of the most practical ways to save money on groceries is by NOT purchasing items for convenience.
I wanted to include a kale salad recipe in our monthly meal plan because it was so good and healthy, so I did what any food blogger would do and learned how to make the kale salad recipe myself!
Reasons Why You Should Make This Sweet Kale Salad
This kale salad recipe is the perfect addition to lunch or dinner for various reasons:
- Fast.
- Picky eater approved.
- Flavorful.
- Make-ahead. The flavors come together even more with some time.
- Healthy. This salad is jam-packed with healthy, superfood ingredients! Kale is rich in antioxidants.
Ingredients For This Sweet Kale Salad Recipe
After a few months of testing, I came up with a great recipe for sweet kale salad. I also created a dressing that is out of this world. The whole recipe, dare I say, is BETTER than the bagged version at Costco!
Let’s talk about the kale salad ingredients:
- Kale. The star of the show! Both baby and curly kale leaves are good but chop the kale finely.
- Brussel Sprouts. Thinly sliced.
- Cabbage. Thinly sliced.
- Broccoli. We’re not using the florets in this recipe – we’re using the stems. It’s a great way to avoid food waste.
- Dressing. This can be made with ingredients you normally have on hand and whisk together: oil, lemon juice, greek yogurt, apple cider vinegar, maple syrup, and salt and pepper.
Psst! If you’re going to add salt, I highly recommend Ava Jane’s Kitchen. You may think all salt is created equal, but unfortunately, 90% of the salt produced around the world contains microplastics (gross, right?). Ava Jane’s Kitchen is an exception. Their salt is 100% microplastic-free, and it’s SO GOOD! Plus, you can get a bag for just 1¢!! (Get your penny bag of salt on this page.)
How to Make The Best Kale Salad Recipe
Making this kale salad recipe is as easy as 1, 2, 3!
Step 1. Chop ingredients and make the dressing.
Note: I love using mason jars for homemade dressing and these lids make it super easy to shake and pour!
Step 2. Mix ingredients in a large bowl and your kale salad dressing together.
Step 3. Let it sit, and enjoy!
Sweet Kale Salad Recipe FAQs
Tips for Making the Perfect Kale Salad Recipe
Chop the bunch of kale, cabbage, and Brussels sprouts finely!
- It makes a huge difference if these ingredients are chopped finely, even smaller than bite-sized pieces. For the Brussels Sprouts:
- Chop off the bottom of the sprout, where it attaches to the stalk. Cut the sprout in half, lengthwise. Place the sprout on the cutting board, cut-side down. Slice it thin, starting at one end and working your way to the other. Repeat with the other half.
- For the Broccoli, you’ll want to julienne the stems, and here’s how you do that:
- Cut the crown of the broccoli off the stem so that you have one big stem (i.e. not one big stem with small stems shooting off of it). Then, cut off the very bottom of the stem, where it attaches to the plant. Cut the stem into 1-1 ½” pieces. Stand one piece on its end and, working from one end to the other, slice the stem into thin pieces. Take about half of the pieces and stack them on each other so that a flat piece is on the cutting board and a round piece is on top. Slice the stem lengthwise again. Repeat with the remaining pieces of broccoli.
- Make before meal prep.
- You’ll want to make this sweet kale salad recipe before you make anything else for dinner. It’s amazing what an extra 15 minutes can do to the flavors.
- Another option is to make it earlier in the day, or even the day before. Whatever is easier for you!
More Tasty Salad Recipes
- The Best Kale Salad Recipe
- Buffalo Chicken Salad
- Cranberry Apple Spinach Salad
- Kale Salad with Blueberries, Walnuts, And Feta
- Strawberry Kale Salad with Pecans and Blue Cheese
No Cook Meal Plan
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Sweet Kale Salad (Costco copycat)
An incredibly delicious sweet kale salad recipe with cranberries, almonds, and a creamy homemade greek yogurt dressing. Healthier than Costco’s bagged salad, and super easy to make! You can even use homemade dried cranberries and homemade greek yogurt.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4
- Category: Salad
- Method: Bowl
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 8 oz Brussels sprouts, sliced thin
- 4 cups kale, loosely packed and then finely chopped
- 1 cup julienned broccoli stems (from about 2 heads of broccoli)
- 2 cups thinly sliced cabbage (from about 1/4 head)
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries (how to make your own dried cranberries)
- 1/4 cup pepitas or sunflower seeds or chopped almonds*
- 1/2 cup Greek yogurt (how to make homemade Greek yogurt)
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice
- 3 Tbsp apple cider vinegar (how to make homemade apple cider vinegar)
- 1 Tbsp maple syrup or honey (I preferred the taste of maple syrup)
- 1/8 tsp salt
Instructions
- Place all chopped vegetables, dried cranberries, and the seeds/nuts in a very large bowl.
- Combine the remaining ingredients in a small bowl and whisk together until the dressing is smooth and creamy.
- Add the dressing to the vegetables and toss thoroughly so that everything is coated well.
- Ideally, let the salad sit for an hour for the flavors to develop. Or you can serve immediately.
Notes
- The bagged salad from Costco came with pepitas, but sunflower seeds are a less expensive alternative. I’ve also made this salad with chopped almonds when I ran out of pepitas and thought that version was even better!
- It makes a huge difference if these ingredients are chopped finely, even smaller than bite-sized pieces. For the Brussels Sprouts:
Chop off the bottom of the sprout, where it attaches to the stalk. Cut the sprout in half, lengthwise. Place the sprout on the cutting board, cut-side down. Slice it thin, starting at one end and working your way to the other. Repeat with the other half. - For the Broccoli, you’ll want to julienne the stems, and here’s how you do that:
Cut the crown of the broccoli off the stem so that you have one big stem (i.e. not one big stem with small stems shooting off of it). Then, cut off the very bottom of the stem, where it attaches to the plant. Cut the stem into 1-1 ½” pieces. Stand one piece on its end and, working from one end to the other, slice the stem into thin pieces. Take about half of the pieces and stack them on each other so that a flat piece is on the cutting board and a round piece is on top. Slice the stem lengthwise again. Repeat with the remaining pieces of broccoli. - Make before meal prep.
You’ll want to make this sweet kale salad recipe before you make anything else for dinner. It’s amazing what an extra 15 minutes can do to the flavors.
Another option is to make it earlier in the day, or even the day before. Whatever is easier for you!
Nutrition
- Calories: 164
The Costco salad has a dairy-free dressing. I noticed your version is not. Any suggestions for getting the same creamy taste without using yogurt?
Hi Jenn!
You might consider a dairy-free plain and unsweetened yogurt to replace the Greek dairy yogurt, if you are unable to use dairy. Sometimes mayo is used in dressings for that creamy texture, but we swapped it for yogurt in this recipe for a healthier version. Thanks so much for you comment. 🙂
I made the dressing to replace the packet that came with the Costco bagged salad. I’m eating it now and the moisture is being sucked out of my mouth. Is that the vinegar? Any other way to make this? It’s not as thick and creamy but it was enough to cover the contents of the whole bag. I would not say, though, that it’s similar to the packet from the bag when it comes to taste.
Hi Danielle, I’m sorry you didn’t like the dressing! We all thought it was pretty spot on. As for moisture being sucked out of your mouth, I’ve never had that happen before… I’m sorry I’m not much help!
I detest broccoli and Brussels sprouts mostly because of their texture and smell when cooked. I had this salad at a graduation party and gobbled it down so fast that I really didn’t look at the salad fixin’s. I thought there might be broccoli in there but I hadn’t noticed any “trees”. I ate it all gone!
So, the takeaway here is that stuff is good, and I know that finally I have found a way to eat this stuff! I never thought I ever would. One last word of advice, if someone you are feeding has dentures, leave the poppy seeds out of the dressing because they hurt like the dickens if they get underneath it.
I’m so glad you liked this salad Helen, and thank you for sharing the tip on the poppy seeds!!
there were poppy seeds in the dressing?? i went back and reread it and i still did not see
poppy seeds.
This recipe didn’t state poppy seeds…. but the Costco bagged salad brings a poppy seed dressing.
Correct, but most people (including myself) don’t have poppy seeds readily available, so I made a version that didn’t require them. 🙂
I am looking forward to trying that dressing recipe as the package never gives you ‘quite’ enough dressing! Something I add and LOVE is some chopped cilantro!
Cilantro sounds good! I hope you enjoy the recipe Sue!
Recipe sounds great! How many people
does this recipe serve? Planning a
luncheon and want to serve it. Thanks!
Hi Camille! This recipe as written will easily feed 4 people as a main meal.
Did you do the math to see if your work saved you any money? Would like to know the time / $$ trade off here.
I loved the instructions you gave. I also like the salad dressing at
The Food court in Costco. Salesperson said they sell it but I have not been able to find it. Ingredients on c
Salad container not good
At $5, the Costco Salad is so inexpensive, I am surprised it was cost effective to recreate it. Way to go.
Thanks Kaycee!
I’m totally that person too! Reading the ingredients, checking the unit price, then thinking about if I really want to buy it!
I love that costco salad! Super excited to try this version
I am from Canada and shop at Superstore. They have many bagged greens / slaws without dressing, seeds, etc. that are actually cheaper per pound than the ingredients. They are not brand name, but are fresh and tasty. I recently found bagged greens that replicate the Costco salad. I cannot wait to make the dressing!
Also from Canada, thanks for your tip – next time I’m shopping at Superstore I’ll look around for their bagged salads. I am a big kale salad fan and despite the price I always grab a bag of greens at Costco, the mix is perfect and sooo worth it for my family!
FYI – the recipe says 1/2 Greek yogurt. Is that 1/2 cup?
Yes! I’ll update the recipe. 🙂