When you're craving a sweetgreen Harvest Bowl and can't get to one, here's your opportunity to make the salad at home. Chocked full of kale, warm wild rice, sweet potatoes, apples, goat cheese, and almonds, this salad is tossed in a creamy and tangy balsamic dressing.
I'm a total sweetgreen fan girl, one of their OG customers, who used to take a mental health day to stroll down the streets of Georgetown just to see other people doing adulty things during the day while I was typically stuck between cinder block walls teaching the youth of tomorrow. Part of the routine was grabbing a salad from sweetgreen and eating it by myself somewhere near the Potomac...just being in total peace. Man, I miss those days!
I even reached gold status (remember when they used to have that loyalty program??!) and got some sweet sweetgreen swag, including a beanie that I'm pretty sure just had the word "kale" on it.
My favorite salad from sweetgreen is their Harvest Bowl, one of their OG salads. The salad is full of whole ingredients that are easy and delightful to make at home because once you do the chopping for one, you might as well make enough to last you the whole week.
Sweetgreen: Do You Have One Yet?
For those unfamiliar, sweetgreen is a fast-casual salad chain that two Georgetown University students started right here in Washington, DC. The first-ever sweetgreen was located in the most adorable little shack on M Street in Georgetown, and the chain filled the need for a healthy fast food option. Now the restaurant has grown to more than 100 locations.
The Harvest Bowl Review
Sweetgreen's Harvest Bowl was my first love at Sweetgreen, and while I've tried several other salads that have all been delicious there, I always come back to the Harvest Bowl for a reason. It's a salad delicious in all seasons, so hearty so you're not hungry afterward, and contains the perfect combo of ingredients with varying textures. This is an essential component of any good salad. It's also got a killer balsamic vinaigrette dressing, which I'll talk about below.
The salad has the following ingredients tossed together with thin-cut pieces of kale:
- kale
- wild rice
- cooked chicken breast
- sweet potatoes
- apples chopped
- goat cheese (or cheddar is delicious, too)
- almonds
The kale is kale. Kale leaves you feeling healthy and proud of yourself for consuming such leafy goodness. The wild rice is soft and warm, making the goat cheese get softer. Then you have the roasted sweet potatoes, which gives a nice hearty aspect to the salad. Then the apples and almonds finish off the salad with a nice crunch.
Sweetgreen Harvest Bowl Calories
I'm not a calorie counter by any means, but I know this is a popular question. According to sweetgreen's website, the Harvest Bowl has 705 calories.
Sweetgreen's Balsamic Vinaigrette Ingredients
I learned the hard way after having to be dairy free for my son when I was nursing that sweetgreen's balsamic vinaigrette is, indeed, NOT vegan (oops!). We all survived though. Somehow!
The key to the creaminess is Greek yogurt (0% fat because you want the dressing pretty thinned out). It's tangy and sweet -- and a little thicker than most vinaigrettes so it really coats all of your ingredients. It's the perfect dressing to tie everything together.
Aside from Greek yogurt, you'll need a good quality balsamic vinegar, Dijon mustard, honey, lemon, salt, pepper, and olive oil. The yogurt gives the dressing a creaminess that's unmatched, the Dijon a little kick, the honey some sweetness, and the lemon some freshness.
Other Favorite Salad Recipes You Don't Want to Miss
- Copycat Chick-Fil-A Superfood Kale Salad
- Copycat Cosi Signature Salad with Sherry Shallot Vinaigrette
- Peach Burrata Salad with Pecans and Balsamic Glaze
- Strawberry Caprese Salad with Balsamic Dressing -- the same dressing as this sweetgreen salad!
xox,
kathryn
As always, if you make anything from the blog, be sure to let me know! I love hearing from you in the comments on this post below or find Worn Slap Out on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!
Sweetgreen's Harvest Bowl Recipe
Ingredients
For the salad:
- 8 cups kale deveined, washed and chopped
- 2 cups wild rice cooked
- 2 cups chicken cooked and cubed
- 1 cup sweet potatoes roasted in cubes
- 1 cup apples chopped
- ¼ cup goat cheese crumbled
- ¼ cup almonds chopped
For the dressing:
- ½ cup plain Greek yogurt (I use 0% fat)
- ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon honey
- juice from half a lemon
- ¼ tsp. salt
- ⅛ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine all of the dressing ingredients except the olive oil. Using a whisk, slowly add the olive oil while whisking vigorously.
- Combine all salad ingredients in a large bowl. Pour dressing over the salad, toss, and enjoy!
Annemarie
What brand wild rice do you use?
Kathryn
I'm a bit snobby with my wild rice preference. I only really like Lundberg wild rice. I can get it at Safeway or Whole Foods around me!
Kami Stewart
This sounds amazing. I’ve been dreaming about SweetGreen since I visited one in LA. Can’t get it near me, so I’m totally making this.
We also tried a bowl or salad that had a pesto dressing…not sure what that one was called, but it was SO good!
Kathryn
Ooooh yes -- I think that's the vinaigrette they pair with the chicken pesto parm! I love that place. Hope you give this Harvest Bowl a try at home!
Erin
This was a 10/10! SO similar to the original, and it makes my heart happy not to pay $15 per salad 🙂 thanks for putting this together!
Kathryn
Yay! It's our favorite around here -- and I love not paying $15 per bowl, too! 🙂 I make a double-batch and eat it for a couple of meals, too!
Olivia Morgan
This salad is so good
Kathryn
Isn't it?! I'm so glad you love it, too, Olivia!
<3,
Kathryn
Alyssa Payne
I would love to know what seasonings to use for the chicken and sweet potato! What would you recommend??
Kathryn
Hi Alyssa! 90% of the time I just use salt and pepper (lots of pepper!) before roasting the chicken in the oven. Sometimes I'll add either garlic powder or umami seasoning I get at Trader Joe's! Garlic powder and smoked paprika are also great together.
<3,
Kathryn