When it comes to building a salad that’s both flavorful and satisfying, this Blueberry Kale Salad checks all the boxes. With baby kale, juicy blueberries, and a tangy lemon vinaigrette, this is a salad you’ll actually look forward to enjoying.
This salad is a delightful mix of textures and flavors, bringing together the earthy goodness of baby kale with the natural sweetness of fresh blueberries.
And let’s not forget the creamy blue cheese and crunchy walnuts, which take this salad from ordinary to extraordinary. Paired with a zesty lemon vinaigrette, this salad is both satisfying and delicious.
Here is Why This Kale Salad Recipe Works
Balance of Flavors: The blue cheese and roasted walnuts add a nice contrast to the sweetness of the blueberries and the tangy lemon vinaigrette.
Easy to Make: With a prep time of just 20 minutes, you can whip this up for a quick lunch or dinner.
Flavor-Packed: The combination of kale and blueberries brings bold, fresh flavors to every bite.
Flexibility: This is a great base salad that you can adapt to fit your personal tastes or dietary needs.
Ingredients for Kale Blueberry Salad
Here is a list of the ingredients you will need for this salad recipe. Scroll down to the printable recipe card for all the details.
For the Lemon Vinaigrette:
- Spices and Seasonings: Salt, Black pepper
- Produce: Lemon, Garlic
- Condiments: Dijon mustard, Honey
- Pantry: Light olive oil
For the Salad:
- Produce: Kale, red onion, fresh blueberries
- Dairy: Blue cheese
- Nuts and Seeds: Roasted walnuts
Ingredient Substitutions
Feel free to put your own twist on this salad. Beyond the blueberry and cheese combination, you can experiment with different mix-ins like toasted almonds, feta cheese, or dried cranberries. Or use a different dressing like a blueberry vinaigrette or our blue cheese dressing for a creamy version. Here are some suggestions.
- Swap out baby kale for baby spinach if you prefer a milder green.
- Replace the walnuts with pecans or almonds.
- Use feta cheese instead of blue cheese for a less intense flavor.
- Maple syrup can replace honey for a vegan-friendly option.
How to Make Kale Salad with Blueberries
Here is a brief overview to get an idea of what to expect with the salad recipe. Scroll down to the printable recipe card for all the details.
- Prepare the lemon vinaigrette.
- Toss the kale in a salad bowl.
- Add onion, blueberries, blue cheese, and walnuts.
- Drizzle with vinaigrette and serve.
Variations
- Toss in some grilled chicken or tofu for a satisfying boost.
- Add sliced strawberries for a touch of sweetness.
- Mix in some quinoa to make the salad more filling.
- Slice up some avocado for extra creaminess.
Tips for Success with Your Blueberry Kale Salad
- Don’t overdress the salad. Add a small amount to start with, then add more if desired.
- Use a salad spinner to dry the greens. If you don’t have a salad spinner, pat the leaves dry with paper towels.
- If you’re preparing this salad ahead of time, add the vinaigrette just before serving. Most varieties of kale don’t get wilty very quickly, but baby kale will get soft quicker than more mature varieties.
- Sometimes kale can taste a bit bitter, especially with the more mature varieties. To reduce the bitterness, you can massage the leaves with lemon juice for a few minutes or soak it in cold water for an hour.
- Select baby kale if you can find it. More mature leaves tend to be tougher and slightly bitter, but either choice will make a great salad.
Serving Suggestions for this Blueberry and Kale Salad
Think of this salad as a canvas for all kinds of meals. Pair it with a grilled ribeye steak for a satisfying dinner, or enjoy it on its own for a light, but fulfilling lunch. Here are some main dishes that go perfectly with this side salad.
- Salmon with blueberry sauce
- Stuffed poblano peppers
- Creamy paprika chicken
- Chicken fried venison steak
- Stuffed portobello with feta cheese
Storing Blueberry and Kale Side Salad
Store any leftover salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a day. Keep the vinaigrette separate to maintain freshness, especially if you use baby kale which will get soft quicker than other varieties.
It is a good idea to store the blueberries separately if you want to make the salad more than an hour or two in advance.
More Kale Salad Recipes
If you’ve fallen in love with the burst of flavors in our blueberry kale side salad, you’re in for a treat. We have more kale salads that you’ll want to try next. Each one is jam-packed with bright, vibrant flavors.
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Blueberry Kale Salad
Ingredients
For the Lemon Vinaigrette:
- ⅓ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 garlic clove grated or minced
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon honey
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- Few grindings of black pepper
- ½ cup light olive oil
For the Salad:
- 5 ounces baby kale
- ½ medium red onion thinly sliced
- 3 ounces blue cheese crumbled
- 1-½ cups fresh blueberries
- ½ cup roasted walnuts
Instructions
For the Lemon Vinaigrette:
- Whisk together the lemon juice, mustard honey and salt. Continue whisking while adding the olive oil in a stream, blending well.
- Transfer to a pitcher of jelly jar and reserve.
For the Baby Kale Salad:
- Add the kale to a wide, shallow salad bowl. Top the greens with red onion slices, blue cheese, blueberries, and walnuts. Drizzle one-third of the lemon vinaigrette over the salad and toss well. Taste and add more vinaigrette if desired.
- Alternatively, divide the kale onto four chilled salad plates, distribute the blue cheese, blueberries and walnuts evenly between the plates and drizzle with the vinaigrette.
Cathy
Sunday 6th of June 2021
Made this for lunch to use our CSA baby kale. Did substitute blue cheese for feta. Delicious and will definetly make this again.
Dahn Boquist
Sunday 6th of June 2021
Thanks for the comment Cathy, this sounds delicious with feta.