Snow Pea and Mandarin Salad

This snow pea and mandarin salad is as fresh and inviting as Spring! It has hearty roasted sweet potatoes, hardy massaged kale, roasted bell peppers and peas. The pops of sweetness from the snow peas and mandarin oranges are complimented with a fresh citrus and herb dressing that screams Springtime. Plus it's plant-based and gluten free!

Why you will love this Snow Pea and Mandarin Salad

You will love this delicious Springtime salad! The merits include fresh seasonal produce, an incredibly flavorful dressing, plus lot's of good for you ingredients. It is vegan and allergy friendly! That is why it is the perfect salad to bring to Easter Brunch or early summer barbecues and graduation parties. The presentation is impressive but it's really easy to make. Plus since it is gluten free, dairy free, grain free and nut free, almost everyone can enjoy it. This salad is colorful, full of texture and good for you ingredients! What is not to love?

Ingredients for Snow Pea and Mandarin Salad

The ingredients list for this salad recipe is not long or full of obscure ingredients. Although we call this a Spring salad, it can be made any time of year with a couple of small tweaks. Let's do a rundown of the recipe ingredients with the best substitute recommendations:

• Kale- The base for this salad is curly kale. Any type of kale will do but I like regular kale here because of the vibrant green color. You can use Red Kale or Dino kale aka Lacinato kale in the same manner as prescribed in the recipe.
• Sweet Potatoes- Roasted sweet potatoes or roasted yams lend a great flavor and making this a very filling salad. They are both delicious and nutritious and are complimented nicely by the limey dressing. If you cannot find the orange variety of sweet potato, use purple sweet potato or white sweet potato. You can even substitute a small type of regular potato like fingerling potatoes or baby new potatoes.
• Snow Peas- I use snow peas in this recipe because they are the epitome of Spring. Their fresh snap and vibrant green color screams renewal. If you can't find these you can also use snap peas.
• Mandarin Oranges- It's no secret that I love putting fruit in salads! Mandarins are one of my favorite fruits to add because they are so sweet and flavorful plus they look pretty! If you can't find mandarins at the market, use cuties, tangerines, blood oranges or cara cara oranges. Whichever oranges are in season or available are going to taste great just make sure they are seedless!
• Peas- Spring is the best time for fresh peas but you can use frozen peas year round! I skip the shelling step by going right for the frozen peas! They are so bright and vibrant green plus they give this salad some plant-based protein! If you really hate peas, use frozen corn instead!
• Baby Bell Peppers- Roasted baby bells give this salad another layer of flavor plus they are super colorful! Plus, oven roasting peppers. Since you are already using the oven to roast the sweet potatoes, it makes sense! But if you can't find baby bell peppers, use a jarred roasted red pepper instead.

What is the dressing made with?

This bright and sweet citrus and herb dressing is delicious and easy to make. These ingredients are easy to find all year but the herbs are tastiest and most abundant in Spring and Summer. Here is the list of ingredients to dress this snow pea and mandarin salad.

• Mint- The fresh pop of mint really brings the Spring flavors together! Feel free to go heavier if you are a mint lover. You can never go to heavy on fresh herbs in my book. This dressing is and excellent way to use up all the garden mint that is taking over your yard.
• Cilantro- I can eat my weight in cilantro, it has such a distinct bright and zesty pop that instantly makes everything taste fresher. If cilantro is not your cup of tea simply double up on the mint or use fresh parsley leaves.
• Citrus Fruit: Fresh Lemon and Lime make the flavors pop in this salad recipe. I love the combination of the tart lemon and zippy lime juice in this salad. But if you don't want to purchase both fruits or have only one available that is okay, just roll with it. Another option would be to use juiced mandarins instead.
• Pure Maple Syrup- I use pure maple syrup as a sweetener to balance the flavors in many of my dressings. This is not Mrs Butterworths syrup, this calls for pure maple syrup that has no added sugar. This dressing calls for two tablespoons which makes a dressing that is pretty sweet! If you are diabetic or avoid sugar, simply reduce to 1 tbsp or leave it out altogether and add a date to the blender instead. Another option is to use the juice of two mandarins which are sweeter than citrus and leave out the maple.
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil- A good quality olive oil will give the dressing a smooth texture and add some healthy fats to this salad. If you prefer an oil-free recipe simply omit the oil. Alternately you can add an avocado for healthy fat and blend it into the dressing or add a roasted pepper to the blending step to give an oil-free dressing more "body"

How to make this Spring Salad

This snow pea and mandarin salad recipe is easy enough for a beginner! There are just a few very simple steps that will produce a salad worthy of being the center of the table!

• Roast the sweet potatoes and peppers- This is a really easy no fuss step. Sheet pan cooking is one of my favorite easy methods. Just set it and forget it is my sheet pan motto!
• Blanch the snap peas and peas- Blanching is a really quick step that even a beginner cook can handle. It involves carefully dropping veggies into boiling water and removing them once they are bright green. This works for broccoli too! Once their color is super vibrant just remove them from the water and throw under a cold water rinse or an ice bath if you are motivated.
• Massage the kale- This is an optional step that is highly recommended. If you have never massaged kale, it does sound funny. But adding oil and salt to your kale or lemon and salt if you prefer oil-free and then massaging it into the leaves produces kale with a more tender mouthfeel and sweeter flavor. Plus, there are rumors that it increases the nutrients bioavailability. That's a win/win in my book!
• Make the dressing: The dressing for this springtime star is made in a high speed blender. Just puree the ingredients until smooth. Easy Peasy!
• Toss the salad- Once all the ingredients are ready, it is time to assemble the salad. Add all ingredients to a large wooden salad bowl, pour the dressing and toss until well combined!

Variations of a Snow Pea and Mandarin Salad

Making this salad as is is really delicious but here are a couple of ways to make it differently but very delicious. Let this inspire you to make the recipe your own!

• Make it oil free- Nowadays oil-free diets are all the rage! If you are oil conscious, simply omit the oil in this recipe. For roasting veggies oil free I suggest instead tossing the sweet potato and peppers in a mixture of 1 tsp miso paste and 2 tsp water. This will coat the sweet potato in flavor and give it a coating for the roasting stage. For the massaged kale just use salt and a squeeze of lemon. The dressing has three options to make this oil free. The first is simply omit the oil. Second option is to add an avocado to the blender dressing for heart healthy fats. The third is to add an extra roasted pepper which you will put into the blender with the dressing ingredients. This option will give it more body.
• Make it a meal! The best way to make this salad a meal is to add protein! I suggest shelled edamame, cubes of baked tofu or tempeh. But this dressing will be really tasty with any mild flavored protein source. My recipes are all vegan and I am plant-based but you can make this your recipe! If you prefer animal protein this will be great with grilled shrimp or chicken.
• Reduce the sugar! If you are sugar free or don't like sweet things or want to reduce the sugar content, that is an easy fix! Just reduce the amount of pure maple syrup by half or even omit it from the dressing! This salad has other items like mandarin oranges, bell peppers and sweet potatoes which can give your salad enough sweetness. I myself am no sweet tooth but I do like a sweet dressing. Feel free to substitute date syrup or whatever your favorite sweetener or just use squeezed mandarins!

Tips for making a Snow Pea and Mandarin Salad

This salad is so wicked easy to make! It almost seems redundant to give tips because it is a really hard recipe to screw up!

• Sweet Potatoes- Be sure they are fork tender before removing them from the oven. Let them cool before adding to the salad.
• Kale- Like with all salads be sure that the kale is fresh! Nobody likes wilted veggies in a salad!
• Blanching the peas and snow peas- Be sure you do not overcook them! A quick pop and stir in the boiling water is enough to bring out the bright green color. A minute or two over will make them ugly and then the salad will be a showstopper for a different reason!
• Blender Dressing! This dressing is amazing because of the ease of preparation. If you don't have a blender you can still enjoy this recipe. Simply chop the herbs up small and whisk the olive oil, citrus juices, salt and pure maple syrup together. Alternately pop all the chopped cilantro and mint in a jar with the other ingredients and shake it up.

Other seasonal salad recipes you will love

• Sweet and Zesty Fruit Salsa
• The Best Kale Crunch Salad
• Dill Pickle Potato Salad