Make Ahead Broccoli Salad with Raisins, Bacon and Cashews

A back yard bbq party complimented by a cold crisp broccoli salad with raisins, bacon and cashews dressed with a mayonnaise, sugar and vinegar based dressing. This broccoli salad recipe is a perfect side dish for any back yard BBQ, picnics, parties thrown your way.

You need this broccoli salad recipe in your back pocket because its make ahead. Check it out. 

Happy Father’s Day to all.

We started the Father’s Day Celebration early by inviting our friends Greg, Cauleen, Connor (20 months), Cameron (the adorable baby) and Martini (Yorkshire Terrier) over for a Saturday evening dinner.

If you remember, Connor has already been a blog star with the posting of his adorable 1st Birthday cake eating photo.  If you haven’t seen it, you really owe yourself a look.

Our two families are Canine related. That’s right, our Yorkshire Terriers are either cousins or brothers or sisters or uncles or aunts or something…and we didn’t even know that until we got to know Greg and Cauleen better. It’s a small world.

Enough small talk, let’s get on to the food lineup.

BBQ Chips and Dip

I started out with an appetizer I found over at Noble Pig.  A beautiful dip resulting in a wonderful creamy taste mixing  feta cheese, cream cheese, mayonnaise, green onions and pepperoncini. And with BBQ potato chips for dipping made for such an interesting and delicious combo. I’ve been dying to give it a try ever since Cathy posted it. 

Cauleen asked for the recipe, so it was a hit and a keeper.

Smoky Chipotle Beef Sliders

I grilled up some of these wonderful little flavor packed sliders, Smoky Sliders With Chipotle Mayonnaise. What a treat! 

I’ve been waiting for the perfect guinea pigs to test them on…Greg and Cauleen, adventurous little foodies themselves, fit the bill. Somehow, I got these little burgers cooked perfectly, the chipotle mayo is a wonderful compliment to the smoky cilantro laced patties and topped with a slice of grilled pineapple.  MUWAAAA! 

Dessert: Shoney’s Strawberry Pie

What a better way to end a summer meal than with Shoney’s Strawberry Pie. This is the 2nd time I’ve made this pie since he posted the recipe on his blog, Big Dude’s Eclectic Ramblings, and we love it. Easy, delicious and it screams Summer.

But let’s get back to the main purpose of this post, and that’s to share this Broccoli Salad Recipe with Bacon.

How To Make Broccoli Salad With Raisins

The meal was complimented by a cold crisp broccoli and bacon salad dressed with a mayonnaise, sugar and vinegar based dressing. 

Throw in some sweet fruity golden raisins and crunchy cashews and it was a perfect side for the spicy burgers.  I got this recipe from my friend Kathy who brought it on a camping trip several years ago. 

We love this broccoli salad recipe and again a hit because Greg insisted on the recipe. The biggest compliment to any cook.

Let’s take a look at just why this creamy broccoli salad is so dang good.

• Fresh Broccoli: You simply must use fresh broccoli for this recipe. I can’t even imagine frozen broccoli would work at all. Let me know if you give it a try. Just rinse the fresh broccoli and cut the tough stems off and divide the florets into pieces.
• Bacon: Bacon simply makes anything better, don’t you agree? Choose a quality bacon from your butcher, or I like to buy Costco brand thick sliced bacon. Yes, you have to buy enough for an army, but I divide it up when I get home and freeze it in portions. Use 6 slices if you’re using regular bacon and 4 slices if you’re using thick cut bacon. Using kitchen shears, cut the bacon in pieces and fry it until crispy.
• Red Onion: I rarely use red onion for this recipe. The flavor is too strong for us. I only use it when I want to add color. I prefer sweet onions, Vidalia if they’re in season.
• Golden Raisins: I prefer them over dark raisins. They simply taste better. They’re fruitier, they’re plumper and softer. Brown raisins can be grainy and tougher. If you do want to use dark raisins, soak them in water for about 30 minutes. You’ll be glad you did.
• Cashews: Who doesn’t love cashews. Chewy, buttery and with a rich nutty flavor, they add a beautiful crunch to this broccoli salad recipe.

Recipe for Broccoli Salad Dressing

I simply can’t resist creamy mayonnaise based dressing that’s been doctored up with sugar and vinegar, let’s take a look:

• 1 Cup Mayonnaise: Please purchase a good quality mayo. I like Best Foods or Hellmans. And please don’t skimp on flavor and texture by purchasing low fat. If only I could purchase Duke’s in Colorado.
• 1/4 Cup Sugar: White granulated. Nuff said. Or organic.
• 2 Teaspoons White Vinegar: Vinegar not only adds the tang to this Broccoli Salad Dressing Recipe, but it also brightens the whole experience. It improves flavor and even makes food look better. Vinegar is famous for neutralizing the strong flavor of any tomato sauced dish, like these Mexican Baked Eggs. You can also use cider vinegar for this recipe.

Enjoy the rest of the photos.

Enjoying some wine on the lawn

Our little Zia insisted on playing lots of ball.

…and a little farming

Greg and Cameron

Recipe for Broccoli Salad with Raisins, Bacon and Cashews

I hope you give this broccoli salad recipe with bacon a try, and if you do, please come back and give the recipe a star rating. And leave a comment about your experience with the recipe.

And if you have a favorite broccoli side dish recipe, let me know, I’d love to give it a try.

More Summer Cookout Side Dishes

• Creamy Smoked Mozzarella Penne Pasta Salad, Baby spinach, roasted red bell pepper and an outstanding Parmesan cream sauce. This unique and hearty pasta salad recipe, that can be made in advance.
• Southwestern Salad with Black Beans, A beautiful combination of greens and vegetables with a feisty honey lime vinaigrette.
• Bacon Blue Cheese Potato Salad, The flavors of blue cheese and bacon flavor this potato salad that’s great for any pot luck, back yard BBQ or picnic. A creamy and delicious potato side dish that will wow your crowd. Give this one a try, it’s creamy, tart and perfect.

And don’t miss my side dish category, you’ll find lots of recipe ideas for those main courses. Including the most popular side dish recipe on my site for Broccoli Cheez Whiz Casserole. A vintage favorite.

Broccoli Salad with Raisins … It’s what for a BBQ side dish