This rainbow salad combines fresh veggies, beans, and seeds with a nutritional yeast dressing. It's the hippie salad of your dreams.
I've expressed my love of classic "hippy food" a lot on here. That back-to-the-land wholewheat and sprouts kind of cooking that borrowed heavily from Indian (such as dal and curries), Japanese (think tofu and macro-bowls), Mexican (enchiladas and avocados), and West Asian (hummus, tabouli, and falafel) cuisines, to name a few.
This is the food that reminds me of home—the comfort food that you still get at local cafes and bakeries on the island—and no matter where you are back home, you'll most likely end up getting a salad like this alongside your order.
This rainbow salad is about a few things, but fundamentally it is about the grated beets and carrots! Maybe it is a little outdated as far as trendy Instagramable food goes, but there is something so delicious about how the dressing and avocado get all up into the grated sweet veggies—it is a dream.
To top off all the colourful veggies is a gingery nutritional yeast dressing. It is a little different from your normal salad dressing as it uses water, tamari, and a good amount of nutritional yeast to make a zingy and creamy dressing that would make any old-school hippy happy.
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Ingredients
- chickpeas,
- English cucumber
- red beet
- carrots
- avocado
- purple cabbage
- sprouts
- sunflower seeds
- pumpkin seeds
- nutritional yeast dressing
Method
Begin by making your dressing. First, you'll want to measure out all the ingredients needed and peel and grate your ginger.
Next, make the dressing in the blender or Vitamix. This is done by adding everything but the oil to the blender, then slowly adding the oil while the blender is running.
Lastly, you will need to prep your veggies but cutting them up all nice and small and using different methods for different textures. I love to grate some (either with a box grater or a food processor) and slice others thinly (you can use a knife or a mandoline). The key to this rainbow salad is using lots of different veggies and getting different textures.
Tips + Notes
The star of this rainbow salad is the dressing. Nutritional yeast may seem like an odd ingredient to add to a salad dressing, especially in this amount, but for vegans and vegetarians, it is a vital ingredient. Nutritional yeast contains Vitamin B12, which is something plant eaters often don't get enough of in their diets. It might take a little time to get used to the flavour, but it is super cheesy and morish!
To make this dressing super creamy, I like to add everythign but the oil to the blender and puree until smooth. I'll then slowly add the oil while the blender is runnign so that it becomes emulisified and super creamy.
Feel free to double to triple this recipe to make more dressing as it will last in the friend for at least a week.
Substitutions
These types of big veggie salads rely on a mix of easy to find vegetables, but they can be adapted to whatever you have on hand.
- grated raw veggies like beet and carrot
- beans like chickpeas or white beans
- something creamy like avocado, hummus, or even a nut cheese
- a crunchy veggie like shredded cabbage or cucumber
- some seeds or nuts—think sesame, pumpkin, or sunflower seed
- something living like sprouts!
- a lettuce base–mixed baby greens, baby kale, spinach, leaf lettuce, bibb lettuce
Other Veggie Heavy Salads
Rainbow Salad with Nutritional Yeast Dressing
This vibrant rainbow salad with nutritional yeast dressing is the perfect west coast hippy kind of salad. Loaded with beans, seeds, and fresh veggies it's a powerhouse.
Ingredients
Nutritional Yeast Dressing
- 6 Tbsp. flaked nutritional yeast
- 3 Tbsp. water
- 2 Tbsp. tamari or Braggs
- 3 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
- 2 large cloves of garlic
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- a thumb-sized piece of ginger, peeled
- Ground black pepper
Rainbow Salad
- 1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1/3 English cucumber, sliced
- 1/2 red beet, grated
- 2 carrots, grated
- 1/2 avocado, sliced
- 1 cup shredded purple cabbage
- Handful sprouts
- 2 Tbsp. sunflower seeds
- 2 Tbsp. pumpkin seeds
Instructions
- Arrange all the salad ingredients in two bowls. Set aside while you make the dressing.
- To make the dressing combine the nutritional yeast, water, few cracks black pepper, Braggs, apple cider vinegar, garlic, and ginger in a blender. Pulse until the mixture is combined and the ginger and garlic are minced. Then, with the blender running, slowly add the oil until the dressing is fully emulsified and creamy.
- Dress the salad and serve immediately. You'll have some extra dressing***
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