Any time you see a Craisin, don’t you just think of Christmas? I know I do. That deep red color adds a wonderful punch to things like cookies, muffins, and salads.
I’m so glad you mentioned salads. Do you see that broccoli salad up there? It’s probably healthy, right? You do want your kids to eat their broccoli, right? One mom told me that her kids eat this salad like it was candy. That’s probably because it has sugar in it, but you can also use a sugar substitute like Stevia if you are morally opposed to mixing sugar with broccoli 🙂 I am not morally opposed. It tastes delicious!
Many other broccoli salads use raisins, but I really love Craisins in this salad, both for the bright color they add, and for the tangy sweetness that you don’t get from raisins. This salad also has walnuts, but you can leave them out if you don’t like nuts or are allergic to them.
I have another secret for you. This salad is super easy to make and great at any time of the year, not just at Christmas time. I made this once and brought it to a pot-luck wedding celebration. The bride and groom told me that people said, “Hey, congratulations on your marriage! Who made the broccoli salad?” If this salad can upstage a wedding, you can bet it’s good.
I would advise making it at least an hour before you plan to serve it to give the sugar time to dissolve. Otherwise, this salad may be more crunchy than you had planned! Once the sugar dissolves into the mayonnaise and vinegar, the dressing turns silky and milky and is just glorious! Put this on your menu for all your holiday meals, summer picnics and pot lucks. Just maybe don’t bring it to a wedding 🙂
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 2 tsp. vinegar
- 2-3 bunches of broccoli chopped into bite-sized pieces
- 1/4 cup chopped red onion
- 1/4 cup Craisins dried cranberries
- 1 Tbsp. bacon bits or three strips of cooked and crumbled bacon
- 1/4 cup chopped walnuts optional
- Mix the mayonnaise, sugar, and vinegar together in your serving bowl and let sit while you prepare the other ingredients.
- Add the chopped broccoli, red onion, Craisins, bacon, and walnuts. Mix until everything is well-coated with the sauce.
- Refrigerate for at least an hour. Stir before serving.
I make this from time to time but I leave out the onion since we have people who don’t care for raw onion. I also add about a cup of pasta and some specialty sausage. Also some pumpkin seeds or other kinds of seeds and sliced almonds. Makes a good main course salad.
I also usually put in some sliced cheese sticks.
This made me giggle because I didn’t even know what a craisin was! Dried cranberries, ah that makes so much sense. What a gorgeous salad Melissa! A great one for the Christmas table!
Thanks Jessica! I never even thought about people in different countries not knowing what a Craisin was! Probably how nobody else in the world would know what Vegemite is, right? (Unfortunately, I do know what that is. I have even tasted it. I wish I had not. No offense).
This looks wonderful. Do you blanch or steam the broccoli? Thanks
Neither! Use totally fresh broccoli!
How far in advance can you make this dish?
I’d say one day in advance. Any more than that and the craisins start turning the sauce pink, which is not super attractive 🙂