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If you’re looking for fall salad recipes, you’ll love this sweet potato salad with apples, cranberries, and crunchy greens. It’s the perfect harvest salad for Thanksgiving or any fall day. 

A close-up of a fall salad recipe made with green lettuce, roasted sweet potato, dried cranberries, walnuts, apples, and parmesan.

This Sweet Potato Salad is the perfect Thanksgiving salad. Colorful and delicious, it is so simple to put together and your guests will love it!

The tangy vinaigrette dressing is the perfect combination with the crunchy lettuce, roasted sweet potatoes, red onions, and sweet dried cranberries and apples.

This scrumptious salad is packed with autumn ingredients. If you love sweet potatoes, check out this Sweet Potato Crostini recipe.  This is one of my favorite fall salad recipes and I know it will be one of yours too.

Why Choose Our Fall Harvest Sweet Potato Salad?A close-up photo of a fork filled with a delicious bite of sweet potato salad. Romaine, sweet potato, apple, cranberry, and walnut can be seen on the fork.

1. Quick and Easy

In just 25 minutes, you can create a masterpiece that will impress your guests. This fall salad recipe is a breeze to whip up, ensuring that you spend less time in the kitchen and more time savoring the season. To save even more time, feel free to use store-bought roasted sweet potatoes or butternut squash. 

2. Health Meets Flavor

Indulge in a nutritious recipe with our healthy harvest salad. Bursting with the natural goodness of sweet potatoes, crisp lettuce, red onions, and more fresh ingredients, this salad is a wholesome treat for your body and taste buds.

3. Sweet and Savory Symphony

The magic lies in the harmonious blend of sweet and savory elements. The roasted sweet potatoes, paired with tangy vinaigrette, create a symphony of flavors that will leave you craving more. It’s the perfect balance for a fall-inspired palate.

4. Versatile Delight

Whether you’re serving it as the star of your meal or as a delightful side dish, our Fall Harvest Sweet Potato Salad is a versatile delight. Pack it for lunch, savor it as a side, or make it the centerpiece of your holiday feast—it suits every occasion.

Ingredients You’ll Need

Mise en place ingredients for a fall salad. Pepper, salt, oil, apple, cranberries, pepitas, apple, sweet potato, walnuts, parmesan, and romaine lettuce sit on a white background.

  • Sweet potato
  • Olive oil
  • Salt
  • Pepper
  • Romaine lettuce
  • Red onion
  • Dried cranberries
  • Parmesan cheese
  • Apple
  • Walnuts
  • Pepitas 
  • Rose vinegar
  • Avocado oil
  • Honey
  • Parsley
  • Garlic
  • Dijon mustard

Note: Get creative with your substitutions! Try feta cheese, blue cheese, or Gorgonzola instead of Parmesan. If sweet potatoes aren’t your preference, roasted butternut squash makes for an excellent alternative.

How to Make a Sweet Potato Salad

Cubes of roasted sweet potatoes with salt and pepper in a sheet pan. Other ingredients for a sweet potato fall salad can be seen around. Creating our Fall Harvest Sweet Potato Salad is a simple and enjoyable process. Follow these basic steps to bring together the rich flavors and textures of this seasonal delight:

1. Roast the Sweet Potatoes

– Preheat your oven to 450°F.
– Cube one large sweet potato and spread the pieces on a baking sheet.
– Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
– Toss to coat and roast for 15 minutes or until crispy.
– Set aside to cool.

2. Make the Vinaigrette

– In a bowl, combine vinegar, oil, honey, fresh parsley, Dijon mustard, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
– Mix well and set aside.

3. Prep the Salad Ingredients

– Clean and dry your vegetables.
– Chop or tear the romaine lettuce.
– Julienne the red onion and Honeycrisp apple.
– Gather dried cranberries, shaved parmesan cheese, walnuts, and sunflower seeds.

4. Assemble the Salad

– Place the lettuce in a serving bowl.
– Add the red onion, Honeycrisp apple, cranberries, parmesan cheese, walnuts, and sunflower seeds.

5. Drizzle and Serve

– Drizzle the vinaigrette over the salad.
– Gently toss to coat all ingredients.
– Serve immediately for the freshest taste.

Enjoy the delightful combination of crispy sweet potatoes, fresh veggies, and the flavorful vinaigrette in our Fall Harvest Sweet Potato Salad! For detailed measurements and a printable recipe card, check out the full recipe at the end of this post. 

A beautiful large white salad bowl filled with a Thanksgiving salad made with romaine lettuce, roasted sweet potatoes, cranberries, apples, onions, parmesan, and nuts. This is an overhead photo of a delicious fall salad.

FAQ 

How Do I Store The Leftovers?

You will store the leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3-4 days in the fridge. If you know you will have salad leftover you can dress the salad with the vinaigrette for each serving. This will prevent the salad from wilting while it is in the fridge. 

What Else Can I Serve With This Salad?

You can add so many amazing toppings to this salad. We love adding quinoa, feta cheese, beans, avocado, or fresh sweet strawberries. You can replace the romaine lettuce with leafy lettuce, spinach, or baby arugula. You can serve grilled chicken or steak with this salad if you want to bulk up the salad. 

What Other Dressings Can I Add To This Salad?

You can dress this salad with honey mustard, balsamic vinaigrette, dijon mustard dressing, and poppyseed dressing. 

A close-up of a fall Thanksgiving salad with apples, sweet potatoes, shaved parmesan, cranberries, and greens.

Yield: Serves 4-6

Fall Harvest Roasted Sweet Potato Salad

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes

Whether you're looking for a Thanksgiving salad recipe or fall harvest salads, you'll want to try this delicious recipe. This fall sweet potato salad with made with roasted sweet potatoes, crunchy lettuce, and many more fall ingredients.

Fall salad with roasted sweet potatoes, apple, lettuce, cranberries, and Parmsan. A lovely Thanksgiving salad recipe.

Ingredients

Salad Ingredients

  • 1 large sweet potato, cubed
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon pepper
  • 1 ½ to 2 heads of romaine lettuce
  • ½ cup red onion, julienned
  • 1 cup dried cranberries
  • 1 cup shaved parmesan cheese
  • 1 Honeycrisp apple, julienned
  • 1 cup walnuts
  • ½ cup pepitas

Vinaigrette Ingredients

  • ½ cup rose vinegar
  • ½ cup avocado oil (or olive)
  • 2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup
  • 1 tablespoon fresh parsley
  • 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon pepper

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 450° F.  Place the cubed sweet potatoes on a 9x13 baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle the salt and pepper on top. Toss the potatoes so they are fully coated in the oil, salt, and pepper. Sweet potato cubes roasted on a sheet pan.
  2. Cook for 15 minutes or until crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. Remove from the oven and set aside to allow the potatoes to cool.
  3. While the potatoes are cooking make the vinaigrette by placing all the ingredients into a medium bowl. Mix with a whisk or fork until fully combined. Taste and adjust flavors as needed. Set aside. The ingredients for a homemade vinaigrette for sweet potato salad are combined in a white bowl with a fork.
  4. Clean all your vegetables and make sure they are fully dry. 
  5. Place your lettuce into a serving bowl and add all the salad ingredients to the top of your lettuce. A salad bowl filled with a fall salad that includes roasted sweet potatoes, apples, cranberries and more.
  6. Drizzle the salad with the vinaigrette and serve immediately.

Notes

Vegan option: use maple syrup and vegan Parmesan.

Make-ahead: Make the dressing and roast the sweet potatoes up to 8 hours in advance. Bring sweet potatoes to room temperature or slightly warm before serving. If packing for lunch, keep the dressing on the side until serving.

© Marina Delio
Cuisine: American / Category: Salad