Autumn Delicata Squash Salad

Now this is THE salad of the season, sorry I probably won't make anything better than this one so get cooking immediately. This is my Autumn Delicata Squash Salad, it's vegetarian and gluten free making it an easy option for most to enjoy. I wanted to make you all a salad that started this season off with heartwarming flavors and ingredients like cinnamon, delicata squash, quinoa, and maple syrup. Not only is it a delicious recipe, but it's a straight-forward recipe to make. You have to prep and roast the delicata squash, massage the kale, and cook the quinoa and lentils on their own. Those four steps take 15 minutes and the rest is easy. The best part is that I encourage you to make more quinoa and lentils than the recipe calls for so you can make the recipe again the next day.

I wanted to note that I was hoping to make this salad enough for 4 people, but I ran out of quinoa and lentils. So, if you'd like to make this recipe for a group of 4, you can easily do it! You can use 2 delicata squash, 1-1 ½ cups of cooked quinoa, 1- ½ cups of green lentils, ¼ cup of dried cranberries, 3 tbsp chopped pistachio, ¼ cup feta crumbles, and 5 cups of shredded kale. As for the seasonings and dressing you can double/triple the amounts to your liking. It would make great for a dinner party salad.

This is a delicious salad to make this season for dinner with a side of shrimp, salmon, or chicken breast. You can enjoy it alone if you're vegetarian for lunch or dinner.

Yields: 1

Portion: 1 bowl

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 25 minutes

Total time: 40 minutes

This recipe is gluten free and vegetarian. This recipe can be easily made vegan by opting out of the feta.

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Ingredients:

Delicata squash:

½ delicata squash, halved lengthwise and seeds removed

Extra virgin olive oil

¼ tsp cinnamon

Sprinkle of paprika

½ tsp salt

Black pepper to taste

Quinoa:

½ cup quinoa, cooked (½ cup cooked quinoa for recipe, save the rest)

1 cup water or vegetable broth

½ cup green lentils, cooked (¼ cup cooked lentils for recipe, save the rest)

2 cups shredded kale

Juice of ½ lemon

Extra virgin olive oil

Pinch of salt

2 tbsp chopped dried cranberries

1 tbsp finely chopped pistachios

2 tbsp feta cheese crumbles

Dressing:

2 tbsp olive oil

½ tsp Dijon mustard

1 tsp apple cider vinegar

½ tsp maple syrup

Salt and pepper to taste

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Instructions:

1. Preheat: preheat the oven to 400.

2. Roast the delicata squash: Slice delicata squash into ½-inch thick half-moons. Add to baking sheet, drizzle on olive oil, season with cinnamon, paprika, salt, and pepper. Arrange on baking sheet and roast for 25 minutes, flipping halfway, until tender and caramelized.

3. Cook lentils and quinoa: Grab two pots, boil quinoa in water or broth in one pot. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes or until the quinoa is cooked and water is absorbed. Fluff with a fork and set aside. In the other pot, fill it with water halfway and add in the lentils. Once it comes to a boil, reduce heat. Cook until tender. Set both aside.

4. Make the dressing: In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, apple cider vinegar, Dijon mustard, maple syrup, salt, and pepper.

5. Assemble salad: In a serving bowl, add kale and massage with a drizzle of olive oil, lemon juice, and salt. Add in the cooked quinoa and lentils. Add the dried cranberries, chopped pistachio, and feta crumbles. Drizzle on the dressing and gently toss. Enjoy!

I hope you love this Autumn Delicata Squash Salad recipe as much as I did, so if you do, please leave me a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! I always read through my suggestions and comments, so please let me know your thoughts. If you have any questions you can feel free to DM me here or through Instagram. Speaking of Instagram - please tag me in all of your creations! I love seeing how the recipes come out and seeing how talented you all are. Sending my love.

xoxo,

Jasmin D the RD