Vegan White Bean Kale Caesar Salad
5 from 2 votes

This vegan white bean kale Caesar salad is a non-traditional take on the classic. It’s made with kale, protein-packed white beans, and a cashew based dressing. It’s exceptionally nutrient-dense and so satisfying!

A nutritious, green salad is being served on a round, white plate with some crackers nearby.

Once upon a time, I thought that Caesar salad would be impossible to veganize. Nowadays I know that pretty much nothing is impossible to veganize, which is one of the happy and exciting discoveries of transitioning into plant-based cooking.

I have a great Caesar dressing, and with that, it’s not hard to make a Caesar salad. That’s how this kale white bean Caesar salad came to be.

The salad is inspired not only be Caesar salad, but also by Tuscan kale and white bean soup. It’s an Italian-inspired hybrid of sorts!

The salad is both fresh and also hearty, a perfect mixture of bitter greens, tangy sun-dried tomatoes, creamy white beans and dressing. It’s a new favorite for me.

Pair the salad with some toasted garlic bread for dinner or crackers for a light lunch. You can also serve it with lentil soup or tomato soup.

A white, round serving plate has been piled high with a kale white bean Caesar salad. A small stack of crackers is visible behind it.

A nutritious, green salad is being served on a round, white plate with some crackers nearby.
5 from 2 votes

Vegan Kale White Bean Caesar Salad

Author – Gena Hamshaw
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Yields: 4 servings

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Prepare the Caesar dressing as directed in the recipe.
  • Place the chopped kale into a large mixing bowl. Pour 1/2 cup (120mL) of the dressing over the kale. "Massage" the dressing into the kale with your hands, squeezing the kale to work the dressing into it and soften the greens.
  • Add the sun-dried tomatoes and beans to the kale mixture and toss to combine all of the ingredients. Add the remaining 1/2 cup (120mL) dressing, or as much as you need to coat all of the salad ingredients completely. Serve.
An overhead image of a kale salad with sundried tomatoes and white beans. It rests on a white serving plate on a gray backdrop.

Caesar salad is one of those salads that qualifies as familiar comfort food for a lot of folks—myself included!

I love how nutrient-dense this white bean Caesar salad is. It’s a vegan spin on the classic that offers up so much fiber, protein, iron, and folate. And it’s delicious—what’s not to love? I certainly do love it.

And I hope you will, too!

xo

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Categories: Recipes, Salads
Ingredients: Kale, White beans
Dietary Preferences: Gluten Free, No Oil, Soy Free, Vegan
Recipe Features: Quick & Easy

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    40 Comments
  1. This is a fabulous recipe! I doubled it, the kale bundles may have been bigger as I needed more dressing and a little more pepper and Himalayan salt. Used Great Northern white beans and did soak the sundried tomatoes. I ribbon cut the kale although the photo looks more like larger pieces. This is incredibly delicious, thank you!

  2. Gena, NOW I see what you meant on twitter!! Oh, my, this looks amazing. And yes, I am going to try it! I’ve used curly kale with my Caesar dressing, but this looks spectacular. I’m sure I’d love the beans, too! Thanks for the link. ๐Ÿ˜€

  3. Wow Gena!

    I’ve been reading your blog for awhile now, and never posted. Nor have I ever made one of your recipes also I always intend to. I finally did! I made this one and I am so glad I did. The dressing is to die for. I left out the celery cause I don’t like it, but otherwise, this is sooo yum and it will be going into my rotation.

    Thanks!

    And congratulations on your seismic life change! I think you will do fantastic.

  4. Wow, we make something very similar and call it Christmas Salad. mmmm, thanks for remind me! Can’t wait for Christmas to come! ๐Ÿ™‚

  5. YUM. vegan caesar, in all it’s forms, is my all-time fave salad, especially on kale instead of romaine! I love the heft of the kale. definitely going to try adding white beans to my next veg kale caesar, looks like the perfect compliment.

  6. Thank you as always for such simplicity combined with amazing flavor (texture, nutritional balance…). You give us “gifts” everyday!

  7. Looks sooo good…I imagine the dark greens with that creamy sauce is just divine.

    Thanks for sharing another winner Gena!

  8. Oh, I definitely get the weird looks at Christmas dinner. Its gotten better in the last couple years though. At least some of the family is willing to try things. Usually only one TEENY bite, but its a step in the right direction. Maybe I can trick them with this dressing! Muaahahaaha

  9. LOVE THIS POST! sure enough as im reading this i have my beans cooking… ironic? i think vegan appetite not.
    KALE QUESTION… if i was to massage kale with lemon and avocado and put in fridge how long would it last?

  10. Okay.. I have to make this.. now!!! All of my fav. things, kale, sun dried tomatoes and white beans! Great job, G!

  11. This looks wonderful, I like the idea of pairing beans with the salad and need to try the dressing. Thanks!

  12. So cute you have a tree even in a tiny apartment.

    The kale salad seems very festive. I like beans in my salad too.

  13. What about a 1/2 soup/salad combo with both tuscan kale and white bean soup and kale ceasar salad? I just had a vision of a very tasty dinner… Thanks for the recipe! ๐Ÿ™‚

  14. Yum. Sounds great as always. Be lucky your mom will eat your salads. My folks don’t seem to want to try anything I make raw, not even tasty sweet deserts. At least dad doesn’t – mom is more willing but still reluctant.

  15. Salad combo looks amazing, Gena! You got me seriously hungry considering your yummy “dense” salad contains all my favorites…. beans, sun- dried tomatoes, vegan caesar and kale! I just did a post recently on the amazingness of roasting veggies with sun- dried tomatoes. Really adds a flavor kick to dishes ๐Ÿ™‚

  16. I love Tuscan kale and white bean soup, so this salad version looks great! I can’t wait to try your Caesar dressing. Caesar salad was always a fave of mine as a kid and I do kinda miss it.

    I can’t wait to hear what your life changes are. So mysterious!

  17. Gorgeous tree. I’ve got to make this. I ordered the Sea Caesar at Angelica for about two years straight!

  18. Looks delicious, Gena! We LOVE seeing kale as the base of a salad. And the vegan dressing looks so intriguing.

    • Thanks Jenna & co.! I plan on posting a salad soon that copies one I saw at the Dole Summit. Very excited.

  19. Looks great Gena! I’m a huge fan of kale salads and raw caesar dressings, both. ๐Ÿ™‚

  20. I love your little tree…and it doesnt even look that “little”!

    I also love that you posted raw, green, vegan food…at a time when everyone is posting chocolate cookies and decadent baked goods (and I am totally guilty of the later..haha!)

    I eat edamame or beans of some sort every day, on top of a big huge green salad. With homemade dressing. It is a staple in my life and although people may get bored with it so I dont blog about it much, I LOVE them. And I love that you post your salads. That makes me happy ๐Ÿ™‚

  21. just bought a bunch of fresh kale yesterday….now I know what’s for lunch!!! Thank you!!!

  22. You have me very curious about your “seismic life changes!” I can certainly hypothesize on the various possibilities, but I will look forward to the big reveal whenever you’re ready. We clearly have some catching up to do! You must be totally under water this time of year though.

    Anyhoo, I too am a fan of the kale/white bean combo! Interestingly, I am craving more and more fresh vegetables as it has gotten colder, as opposed to their root veg or frozen counterparts, which are usually fine with me. Also cannot get enough rice! The rice cooker changed my life. No complaints there. ๐Ÿ™‚ xo

  23. I luvvvv Kale, and I am so excited to try this recipe/dressing! I’m always looking for new ways to incorporate raw greens (kale, chard, collards) into my diet. Thanks for this idea ๐Ÿ™‚

  24. i am all over this. yum! sometimes i think we share tastebuds.

    i’ve been a bad commenter lately, but i thought i’d reiterate that, as you know, i am so, so excited for you and your big life changes.

  25. I have a can of white beans that I was intending to make into a bean dip, but I might have to switch up the plans!

  26. I’m a huge kale fan and this salad looks great. I’ve been avoiding salads lately (brrrrrrrrrrr, baby, it’s cold outside) but I need to remember that salads are my friend (but maybe with a hot cup of tea or a small bowl of soup)

    • Yes, thank you, so much. I just posted about how you and your salad recipes have really changed my view of salad for life. So thank you!

  27. Wow I am loving this salad! Tuscan kale is my absolute favorite along with white beans and who doesn’t love a yummy vegan caesar dressing?