Healthy Waldorf Salad

This healthy Waldorf salad recipe is a delicious celery and apple salad that can be served as a side dish or a light meal. It has a refreshing, fruity, tangy flavour, and a lovely crunchy texture. And it's packed with healthy vegetables, fruit and walnuts.

Waldorf salad dates back to 1893 when it was first served at the Waldorf hotel for its debut event, a charity ball held for a children's hospital.

The original salad was a mix of celery and apples, tossed in a rich mayonnaise. This healthy Waldorf salad recipe is mayo-free. It has a creamy yogurt dressing with olive oil that complements the other textures and flavours.

What's good about mayo free waldorf salad?

• Celery is often associated with low calorie diets as it consists mostly of water. But crunchy celery stalks are also a source of fibre and antioxidants. (You can read more about the health benefits of celery here)
• There's solid evidence behind the old saying 'An apple a day keeps the doctor away'. Apples are a good source of fibre, vitamin C and beneficial plant compounds. Apples also contain pectin which is a prebiotic which feeds the good bacteria in your gut
• Walnuts are a nutritional powerhouse. They contain healthy omega 3 oils, fibre, vitamins and minerals. They also add protein to your healthy waldorf salad, to keep you fuller for longer
• A mixture of olive oil and natural yogurt provides healthy fats and probiotics. This Waldorf dressing without mayonnaise also means cutting down on some of the not-so-good fats and other additives

Ingredients

Celery stores well in the fridge - you could use it up in this apple and celery soup recipe.

Apples. Use whichever eating or dessert apples you enjoy. If you've got red-skinned apples they'll look especially attractive in this apple and celery salad.

Yogurt. You'll need plain unflavoured yogurt for this healthy Waldorf salad dressing. Use Greek yogurt if you prefer. Low fat or full fat are both fine.

You can also make a vegan or dairy-free Waldorf dressing with dairy-free yogurt.

Olive oil, or another healthy oil. If you want to make a low-fat, low-calorie Waldorf salad, omit the olive oil and use a thick fat-free yogurt for the dressing.

Sultanas or raisins. These add a nice sweetness to the salad.

Walnuts add crunch and extra protein.

Salt and pepper, to taste.

How to make healthy waldorf salad

The dressing for this waldorf salad recipe takes just seconds - simply gently stir together the yogurt and olive oil with some seasoning.

Add the chopped apple, celery, sultana and walnuts and mix together. Leave the peel on the apples - it's quicker, looks pretty, and retains much more of the goodness of the apple

Recipe variations

If you prefer, add fresh grapes rather than sultanas.

Pecans make a great substitute for walnuts. I sometimes use sunflower seeds if I haven't got nuts.

To turn the recipe into more of a meal, add some extra protein to your healthy Waldorf salad:

• Add some cubes of cheddar cheese
• Or try a chicken waldorf salad by adding some pieces of cooked chicken
• I regularly have a tuna waldorf salad for my lunch. Just stir in a well drained can of tuna
• If you'd prefer a vegan salad, add more nuts or roasted chickpeas

Serving and storage

This mayo free waldorf salad recipe makes a great accompaniment to barbecues. Try serving alongside these easy veggie burgers, or a low carb quiche (no pastry). It's also lovely with cold chicken or poached salmon

Eat immediately, or store in the fridge for an hour or two. If you store celery and apple salad for much longer, it will lose some of its crunch.

I don't recommend freezing healthy Waldorf salad as the apples will go mushy when defrosted.

Other healthy salads you might like

Why not try one of these other delicious healthy salad recipes? You might also like to browse the vegetable and salad category.

Recipe

Please note nutritional information is per serving and is provided for guidance only.