I hope you all had a happy candy filled halloween. Are you in need of a big healthy salad to get you back on track this week? I have the perfect salad for you… Autumn harvest salad with roasted butternut squash. This salad is nutrient dense and tastes amazing. Packed with kale, quinoa, toasted pumpkin seeds, roasted butternut squash, crumbled feta cheese and pomegranates for a pretty finish. This hearty autumn harvest salad with roasted butternut squash makes a perfect lunch and or dinner .
If you have been following me, you know I have a thing for kale. This was not always the case. You see the trick to Kale is you need to remove it from the stem, massage it for a couple of minutes in a small amount of homemade salad dressing. The longer it sits the better it tastes. There is so much to love about this autumn harvest roasted butternut squash salad. First, it’s loaded with protein, fibre, vitamins and minerals. Second, it’s hearty enough for a main dish but if you want you can add a grilled chicken breast or salmon fillet. Third, this autumn harvest salad with butternut squash tastes even better the next day. Now that’s a real salad in my eyes.
Zest Nutrition
Yields 8
20 minPrep Time
30 minCook Time
50 minTotal Time
Ingredients
- 8 cups of kale, washed and chopped into small pieces
- 1 butternut squash, peeled and cubed into 1 inch pieces
- 1 cup of quinoa,
- 3/4 cup of pumpkin seeds, toasted
- 1/2 pomegranate
- 1/2 cup of feta cheese, crumbled
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp maple syrup (pure)
- 1/4 tbsp cayenne pepper
- salt and pepper to taste
- Salad Dressing
- 3 TBSP of extra virgin olive oil
- 1 TBSP white wine vinegar
- 1 tsp dijon mustard
- 1 tsp honey
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Toss butternut squash in olive oil, maple syrup and cayenne pepper.
- Bake butternut squash for 20-30 minutes. stirring every ten minutes.Let it sit and cool for about 5 minutes
- While the butternut squash is roasting, cook your quinoa according to directions. allow to sit and cool for 5-10 minutes
- In a large bowl combine kale and massage with 1 tbsp of salad dressing.
- Add butternut squash, pumpkin seeds, and pomegranate seeds to kale.
- Toss with 1 tbsp of salad dressing.
- Add crumbled feta cheese on top.
Enjoy!