The Kitchen McCabe

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Warm Roasted Butternut Squash and Quinoa Salad

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warm butternut squash and quinoa salad

This lovely Vegan quinoa salad is so full of beautiful color, I’d almost rather stare at it than eat it.

Just kidding, I DEFINITELY look forward to eating it. My kids even eat the little cubes of golden butternut squash like it’s candy. It’s full of  earthy grains, a subtly tangy dressing, and sweet squash and cranberries. So perfect for the cold, drab winter. Brightly colored foods just make me so happy!

roasted butternut squash and quinoa salad 4

This salad makes an elegant side dish, served warm alongside other dishes.

You could serve it as a cold salad as well, just make sure to add the dressing right before serving. The olive oil will firm up if refrigerated.

warm butternut squash and quinoa salad 2

I love the red quinoa. Did you know that quinoa has the highest protein content of all grains? It has twice as much fiber as other grains and is full of essential vitamins and minerals, including iron. I love it’s texture and nutty flavor. It’s pretty great stuff.

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Warm Roasted Butternut Squash and Quinoa Salad
 
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Serves: Serves 8-12
Ingredients
  • ¾ C. Dried Cranberries
  • ¾ C. Baby Spinach Leaves
  • 1 T. Fresh Lemon Juice
  • 1 T. Raw Honey
  • 1 T. Olive Oil
  • Large Pinch of Salt
  • 1 Butternut Squash, peeled and cut into a medium dice
  • 1 T. Olive Oil
  • ½ t. Coarse Salt
  • ½ large Sweet Onion, thinly sliced
  • ½ T. Olive Oil
  • 4 C. Red Quinoa, cooked and kept warm
  • 1½ C. Wheat Berries, cooked kept warm
Instructions
  1. Place the spinach and dried cranberries in a large bowl. Cover and set aside.
  2. Place the lemon juice, honey, 1 T. Olive Oil, and pinch of salt in a small bowl and whisk until combined. Set aside.
  3. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking pan with tin foil.
  4. Toss the diced butternut squash with 1 T. Olive Oil and ½ t. Salt. Spread the squash out evenly on the tin foil lined baking sheet.
  5. Roast the squash on the top rack of the oven for 15-20 minutes, or until squash is tender and turning golden brown on top. Remove from oven.
  6. While the squash is roasting, place the ½ T. Olive Oil in a small saute pan and heat to medium/high. Add the sweet onion and saute for 2 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium and continue to saute for another 5-6 minutes, until the onion is lightly caramelized.
  7. Add the hot butternut squash, hot onions, warm quinoa and wheat berries to the bowl of spinach and cranberries. Toss together to slightly wilt the spinach. Add the dressing and toss until well coated.
  8. Serve warm.

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Comments

  2. I’ve made this dish several times now and we love it. It’s good the day after too! To simplify, I roast the sliced onions right with the squash-saves a step and the onions get nice and browned.

    Reply

  3. question about the wheat berries & quinoa how did you cook them? was it 4 cups cooked quinoa or uncooked ? just really confused here thanks!

    Reply

    • Hi Jennifer! Yes, you could probably do it in the slow cooker, but I’m not sure on the amount of liquid you’d need as I haven’t done it myself. =)

      Reply

  11. I made this recipe and it turned out okay. I roasted the onions with the squash which saved me a step. The taste was kind of weird. I made this for a potluck and it didn’t do that great. I honestly think it needs a different dressing but I dunno what changes it would need. I liked it, but i didn’t LOVE it. I like it enough to finish the left overs, but I probably wouldn’t make it again.

    Reply

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