With Thanksgiving just four days away, we are doing our last-minute planning and shopping for the big day. I wanted to share the salad we plan to serve alongside our turkey, stuffing, and mashed potatoes. This is a great one because it’s full of fall flavors but packs a nutritional punch as a bonus. It’s tangy, sweet, savory, crunchy, and makes the perfect side dish for dinner or works well on its own with some added protein as a full lunch or dinner meal.

You can cook the squash and quinoa ahead of time and make the dressing in advance for easy assembly, day of!

Fall Harvest Salad Recipe
Serves 4-5 as a side or 2-3 as a main dish

Salad Ingredients:
– 1 small butternut squash, peeled and cubed. I plan to buy it pre-cut to save time.
– 1 large bunch of Lacinato kale, chopped or shredded
– 1 cup, cooked quinoa
– 1 large apple, chopped
– Small handful, dried cranberries:
– Small handful, walnuts or pecans
– Small handful, roasted pumpkin seeds
– 1/2 cup, crumbled goat cheese, feta, or blue cheese

Vinaigrette Ingredients:
– 3 tbs, olive oil
– 2 tbs apple cider vinegar
– 1 tbs, maple syrup
– 2 tsp Dijon mustard
– 1 garlic clove, pressed
–  Salt and black pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400F.

2. Toss the squash with olive oil, salt, and black pepper. Spread out in a single layer on a baking sheet and roast for 15-20 minutes or until tender. Flip them after 10 minutes.

3. While the squash is roasting, cook the quinoa according to packaging instructions, then let cool.

4. Make your dressing by shaking all of the ingredients in a jar or Tupperware until combined.

5. Massager your kale with a sprinkle of sea salt to make it less bitter and easier to chew.

6. Add kale to a large salad bowl with the dressing and toss to combine.

7. Add the quinoa, squash, apples, nuts, seeds, cranberries, and goat cheese and toss again.

8. Serve and enjoy!

Photo by Julia Dags.