Warm puy lentil, broccoli & sweet potato salad (2024)

Featuring 3 superfoods, this Warm Puy Lentil, Broccoli & Sweet Potato Salad is a very easy and delicious bowl of nourishing food. The chimichurri-style dressing takes it to new heights, making this a salad you can get really excited about.

I’ve been reflecting about my health a lot recently and the impact that food has both on my body (I’m not just referring to weight, but also things like energy levels) and mind.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I will never be one of those who live on kale and thinks that cake is the devil. Just not my thing. And I’ll always be rather partial to pizza until the day I die.

But, especially since having my daughter, looking after myself has become more of a priority and good, nourishing food is a thing I pay particular attention to.

There is no doubt about it: when you eat well, you feel well. It’s simple as that. The key is simply to find things that you genuinely enjoy eating and create meals around those, meals that you can really look forward to.

It’s not rocket science but I’m telling you this because I’ve seen loads of people going on a mad health kick, forcing themselves to eat things they disliked, simply because they were considered “healthy” or “low fat/low calorie/low carb/whatever”. Guess what? They lasted a couple of weeks, a few months at best. Then reverted back to their old habits.

But I am a strong believer that there’s a way around that, it doesn’t have to be all or nothing.

As a busy working mum, easy dishes such as this Warm Puy Lentil, Broccoli & Sweet Potato Salad are the most straightforward way to throw together a good nourishing meal. My Brown Rice & Edamame Salad is another great example of this.
There are no complicated recipes to follow, just a very basic method that I detail in my Vegetarian Meal Prep for Beginners guide.

As a general rule of thumb, I fill…

1/4 of my bowl with a vegetarian protein source. For today’s salad, I used lentils, but chickpeas, beans, edamame, tofu and tempeh work great too. Unless you’re vegan, you can also add eggs and cheese to the list.

1/4 of my bowl with carbohydrates. These can be in the form of rice, pasta, couscous, bulgur wheat but also potatoes and quinoa just to name a few. Whenever possible I try to go for the wholegrain varieties.

1/2 of my bowl with vegetables. These can be raw, roasted, steamed, grilled, sauteed… Basically, however, you enjoy them the most. I chose just broccoli for this salad but there’s nothing stopping you from having a mix.

Lastly, I finish my nourish bowl with 1 or 2 tablespoons of healthy fats such as olive oil, homemade dressings, avocado, seeds or olives. Not only are these great for you, but they also bring the rest of the ingredients together and add great flavour.

Follow this rough guide, use foods you love, try different things and, most importantly, mix it up. These are my top tips to eat healthy every day.

If you love the 3 main ingredients of today’s recipes, then you are going to love this Warm Puy Lentil, Broccoli & Sweet Potato Salad. It’s a feast of flavours and contrasting textures, all brought together by a really lovely chimichurri-like dressing made with coriander (you can also substitute with parsley), garlic, red onion, lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil. I warn you, this is seriously garlicky so make sure your smooching partner eats it too so that the garlicky kisses are mutual.

HOW TO MAKE MY WARM PUY LENTIL, BROCCOLI & SWEET POTATO SALAD

Start off by cutting both the sweet potato and broccoli into bite sized pieces. Place the sweet potato on a baking tray, drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and pepper and roast at 200C degrees for about 5 minutes. Add the broccoli to the tray and cook for a further 10-15 minutes until the sweet potato is cooked through.

While the vegetables are roasting, prepare the dressing by putting the coriander, garlic, red onion, lemon juice and olive oil in a food processor and blitzing until finely chopped.

DESCRIPTION

Featuring 3 superfoods, this Warm Puy Lentil, Broccoli & Sweet Potato Salad is a very easy and delicious bowl of nourishing food. The chimichurri-style dressing takes it to takes it to new heights, making this a salad you can get really excited about.

INGREDIENTS

2 large sweet potatoes, washed and cut into bite-sized pieces

Olive oil for drizzling

Sea salt and black pepper to taste

1 medium head of broccoli, cut into bite-sized pieces

1 250g pack of ready-to-eat puy lentils (I used Merchant Gourmet)

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For the dressing:

15g fresh coriander

2 garlic cloves

1 small red onion or shallot

The juice of 1/2 lemon

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

INSTRUCTIONS

Pre-heat the oven to 200C degrees.
Place the sweet potato on a baking tray, drizzle with olive oil and season well with sea salt and black pepper. Roast for 5 minutes, then add the broccoli to the tray and mix well so that they’re also coated in a little oil (add more if necessary). Return the tray to the oven and cook for a further 10 to 15 minutes until the sweet potato chunks are cooked through.
While the vegetables are in the oven,make the dressing by putting the coriander, garlic, red onion, lemon juice and olive oil in a food processor and blitzing until finely chopped. If you don’t have a food processor, use a sharp knife to chop the coriander, garlic and red onion as finely as you can. Then place them in a bowl and add the lemon juice and oil.
Heat up the puy lentils according to package instructions and tip them into a mixing bowl. Add the sweet potato, broccoli and dressing, then toss to coat. Adjust seasoning if necessary and enjoy right away.

NOTES

Suitable for vegans.
This salad can be refrigerated for up to 4 days, making it ideal forMeal Prep.