I realize this could be seen as heresy–people tend to take their traditional recipes very seriously. But I never grew up eating broccoli salad; I grew up with the ’80s-chic layered salad with iceberg lettuce, bacon, peas, Miracle Whip mixed with sugar (yeah, that was me gasping), and Swiss cheese. So I don’t have any particular loyalty to traditional broccoli salad recipes. If you have a recipe you love, that’s awesome. But if you’ve always been a little iffy on broccoli salad, today is your day.
For the salad, you’ll need 12 ounces of broccoli florets (fresh, just in case there was any question) and 12 ounces of broccoli slaw. You’ll also need a cup of salted sunflower seeds, a cup of Craisins, 6 ounces of cooked, bacon, and a small red onion.
For the dressing, you’ll need mayonnaise, quite a bit less sugar than traditional recipes call for, red wine vinegar, mild coarse grain mustard (I used Creole mustard), salt, freshly ground black pepper, and a couple tablespoons of grated red onion (I just grated some of the red onion I chopped up for the salad.)
Combine the dressing ingredients in a small bowl…
and whisk until smooth. Set aside. Break the broccoli florets into small pieces and toss with the broccoli slaw. Add the bacon, Craisins, chopped onion, and sunflower seeds
I love the sight of bacon mixed with my vegetables.
Toss until combined. Drizzle the dressing over the salad and combine thoroughly.
If possible, chill for at least an hour before serving.
Serves 10-12.
