Sweet potato salad for a healthy vegan picnic

Use orange yams like these or sweet potatoes for this
salad.

Here in the Pacific Northwest, it’s feeling a little chilly for a Labor Day picnic. But whether your picnic is outdoors beneath the trees or indoors next to the fireplace, this sweet potato salad is a nice healthful and hearty twist on more traditional fare.

It’s vegan because it uses Vegenaise mayonnaise substitute. These days, even non-vegan cooks are choosing this product because it has an authentic taste—more like old-fashioned homemade mayonnaise than any of the commercial varieties.

Use either yams or sweet potatoes in this recipe. Yams have a deeper orange color and a moist texture. Sweet potatoes have pale yellow flesh and are somewhat less sweet.

Sweet Potato Salad

4 sweet potatoes
1/4 cup Vegenaise mayonnaise
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
3 stalks celery, cut in 1/4-inch slices
1 small red bell pepper, cut in 1/4-inch dice
1 cup diced pineapple (fresh or very well-drained canned)
2 scallions, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup chopped pecans, toasted in the frying pan for a few minutes

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Wrap sweet potatoes individually in foil and bake for 45 minutes. Don't let them get too soft. Cool, peel, and cut into 3/4-inch chunks. Mix together the mayo and mustard. Add all other ingredients except pecans. Chill at least one hour and fold in the pecans before serving.