Italian Broccoli Salad

Make the most of autumnal produce with this flavour packed salad - with an Italian twist! The addition of plump Kalamata olives and salty sundried tomatoes mean this unique salad will be a hit with foodies and family alike.
Prep Time 10 minutes
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Only two days to go before my Cooking Workshop at the Go Green Expo here in Auckland, and I cannot wait to see you! I’m going to be teaching you how to make two incredible recipes – both entirely plant-based, made with nutrient-dense whole food ingredients, easy to recreate at home, and of course impossibly delicious. On the sweet front we’re going to be making these delicious Ferrero Rocher Choc Hazelnut Truffles. They’re one of my favourite recipes of all time and one of the most popular on my blog, so I know you are going to love them. If you’re a fan of Nutella or chocolate and hazelnuts in general, then you’ll find these a real treat.

Italian Broccoli Salad recipe by Buffy Ellen of Be Good Organics - paleo, keto, vegan and gluten free

Then of course I had to choose something for our main. Because tradition would have it that savoury must be consumed before sweet (unless you’re my mother in law, in which case the reverse is entirely legitimate…!).

I was originally planning to do this Pomegranate Cauliflower Couscous Salad, as it has such incredible flavour and has received such great reviews from those of you who’ve made it. But on visiting the markets earlier this week, low and behold cauliflowers have spiked to NZ$11 a pop! (US$8 / EUR 7). Yes, no longer are my darling cauliflower an appropriate seasonal fit for these increasingly autumnal New Zealand days.

Beside the cauliflowers however were the most glorious looking broccoli, at half the price for two. The farmers told me that cauliflowers are rather tricky to grow right now, and can be quite sensitive to temperature changes. Broccoli in contrast are a lot easier, and luckily for us their harvesting has just begun.

Italian Broccoli Salad recipe by Buffy Ellen of Be Good Organics - paleo, keto, vegan and gluten free
Italian Broccoli Salad recipe by Buffy Ellen of Be Good Organics - paleo, keto, vegan and gluten free

Beside the cauliflowers however were the most glorious looking broccoli, at half the price for two. The farmers told me that cauliflowers are rather tricky to grow right now, and can be quite sensitive to temperature changes. Broccoli in contrast are a lot easier, and luckily for us their harvesting has just begun.

Italian Broccoli Salad recipe by Buffy Ellen of Be Good Organics - paleo, keto, vegan and gluten free

And so I’ve made this delicious raw style salad, retaining all the fantastic vitamin C content of our broccoli, with a rich and nourishing Italian twist. Think salty sun-dried tomatoes, rich kalamata olives, zingy red onion, crunchy red capsicum, all drizzled in a sweet and tangy balsamic dressing. If you’ve made a raw cauliflower dish before then this is an amazing way to switch things up! Plus there are so many incredible vitamin and mineral benefits going on here, but I’ll have to save that for Sunday’s workshop. For now, here’s a sneak peak of the recipe, and of course for all my non-Auckland friends who aren’t able to attend. For the rest of you, I can’t wait to see you on Sunday!

PS If you make this flavour packed Italian Broccoli Salad with Sundried Tomatoes and Olives, I’d love to hear your feedback in the comments area below or over on my Facebook page. Or if you’re a food-snapper like me, share your bowls of beauty on Instagram with the tags @begoodorganics and #begoodorganics. I can’t wait to see what you come up with!

You can also bookmark this recipe on your favourite recipe board on Pinterest. And if you’re not already subscribed to my weekly recipe emails, make sure you do that here!

Italian Broccoli Salad recipe by Buffy Ellen of Be Good Organics - paleo, keto, vegan and gluten free


Please note – if you are wanting to meet any of the specific dietary requirements below, please read my recipe notes.

Italian Broccoli Salad

Serves 2 as a main, or 4 as a side
No ratings yet
Servings 2
Prep Time 10 minutes

Ingredients

Broccoli Salad

  • 1 large head broccoli ~480g, including the stalk
  • 1/2 red onion 1/2c diced
  • 1 red capsicum 1/2c diced1/2c parsley (chopped and packed)
  • 6 sundried tomatoes
  • 1/4 c kalamata olives sliced
  • 3 medjoul dates pitted & fined diced

Balsamic Dressing

  • 2 tbsp extra virgin cold-pressed olive oil
  • 2 tsp balsamic vinegar
  • 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tsp coconut nectar
  • 1/4 tsp sea salt

Instructions

  • Put the sundried tomatoes in 1/2 cup of boiling water and set aside to soak.
  • Meanwhile cut the head off your broccoli, then thinly slice the skin off the stalk. Chop the head and stalk roughly and place in a food processor. Pulse gently until roughly chopped into 1/4-1/2cm pieces – some roughness and irregularity is good. If your food processor is strong enough, you can add the red onion at the same time and chop these together.
  • Remove the sundried tomatoes from the water and thinly slice (give the tomato water to your plants!).
  • Place all salad ingredients in a bowl and mix gently, lifting to combine.
  • Place all dressing ingredients in your food processor bowl (no need to clean in between) and blend until thick and creamy, then pour over salad and mix lightly to combine. Serve straight away!

Recipe Notes

  • Make it keto: replace the dates in the salad with extra sundried tomatoes and olives, and replace the coconut nectar in the dressing with erythritol.
  • Make sure not to overblend the broccoli to a mush, you want to keep it dry and with some texture.
  • If washing your broccoli, be sure to dry it off well with an old tea towel before blending, again so you don’t create a wet mix.
  • To make this dish a complete meal, add a can of well drained chickpeas and some roasted potato cubes (roast for 25 mins at 200°C (390°F) with some coconut oil and sea salt). We had this for dinner last night and it was amazing!
  • This salad looks its best on the day of making. Whilst it still tastes great the next day (and in fact the flavours amplify and soak into the broccoli), it will lose a bit of its vibrant colour. Be sure to keep it in a sealed container if storing in the fridge overnight, to maintain maximum nutrients in the wonderful plant ingredients.
Italian Broccoli Salad recipe by Buffy Ellen of Be Good Organics - paleo, keto, vegan and gluten free
Italian Broccoli Salad recipe by Buffy Ellen of Be Good Organics - paleo, keto, vegan and gluten free