Sweet Potato Salad

This sweet potato salad recipe is colorful and delicious! Roasted potatoes, greens, and cranberries make the ideal sweet and savory mix.

Looking for a delicious salad featuring everyone’s favorite root vegetable? Try this Sweet Potato Salad! You won’t be able to stop shoveling in bites of this healthy side dish (we couldn’t, at least). The contrast of garlic roasted sweet potato cubes, feathery baby arugula, cranberries and creamy goat cheese hit it out of the park. Top it with tangy honey mustard dressing and well, you’ll want to park yourself in front of the bowl.

Tips for making roasted sweet potatoes

The longest lead item in this sweet potato salad recipe is roasting the potatoes! This salad is built around these Roasted Sweet Potatoes: our master method for baking them until they’re caramelized and tender. Here are a few notes for that method:

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Sweet potatoes are best roasted at very high heat, which gets the best caramelization (called the Maillard reaction).
• Dice the sweet potatoes into 3/4-inch chunks. This might sound oddly specific, but it’s the ideal size for bite-sized pieces. (Cut them too small and they shrivel up in the oven.)
• Season with olive oil, salt and garlic powder. See the recipe below for specifics.
• Roast on parchment-lined baking sheet for about 25 minutes, until tender. There’s no need to stir! Throw them in and they roast up like a charm.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds sweet potatoes (about 4 medium)
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• Fresh ground black pepper
• 6 tablespoons Honey Mustard Dressing (or Balsamic Dressing or Orange Vinaigrette for vegan)
• 2 cups baby arugula (not standard arugula*, plus 2 to 3 cups mixed greens for the plated salad variation)
• 1/2 medium shallot, thinly sliced into half moons
• ¼ cup dried cranberries or cherries
• ¼ cup pepitas
• ¼ cup feta or goat cheese crumbles (optional)

Instructions

1. Roast the sweet potatoes: Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Dice the sweet potatoes into 3/4” cubes, leaving the skin on. In a large bowl, mix the sweet potatoes with the olive oil, garlic powder, and kosher salt.
3. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place the sweet potatoes on top in an even layer. Bake for about 25 minutes, until the cubes are tender and browned on the bottom. (You can make ahead the roasted sweet potatoes and refrigerate until serving: bring them to room temperature prior to making the salad, or reheat them in a 350 degree oven until slightly warmed.)
4. Meanwhile, make the Honey Mustard Dressing.
5. When ready to assemble the salad, in a bowl mix the roasted sweet potatoes with the baby arugula, shallot, cranberries, pepitas, feta or goat cheese crumbles, and 6 tablespoons of the dressing. Mix, then serve. (Plated salad variation: Add 2 to 3 additional cups mixed greens. Place the greens on plates, top with the potatoes, cranberries, shallot pepitas and cheese, and drizzle with dressing.)