Fall Harvest Spinach Salad

I am always on the lookout for ways to combine the delicious flavors of fall, and totally fell in love with this salad Brendan Walsh shared on this week’s podcast episode. With quinoa, roasted butternut squash, apples, dried cranberries dressed with a delicious oil-free, this creation originally from Brittany Mullins at eatingbirdfood.com is a winner!

I couldn’t stop eating it and loved thinking of all the ways I could use this recipe as a starting block for others–with the quinoa it makes a wonderful main dish salad, but you could also use the dressing on a simple green salad with apples, dried cranberries and pepitas/nuts as a delicious side salad.

It’s the kind of side dish that is perfect for plant-based eaters to bring to potlucks and even Thanksgiving as it can serve as a plant-based main dish and side for others.

It’s also a great meal to make ahead–things like cooking quinoa and roasting butternut squash do take some time, but most of it is hands off and it’s so nice when you can give them plenty of time to cool. Although having a little warm roasted squash in the mix is delicious too!

Essentially this is a great salad recipe to have in your collection and I’m so grateful Brendan (and his wife who sounds like an amazing cook) shared it with us!

If you haven’t already caught Brendan’s story, he was living a life full of parties and alcohol when a motorcycle accident gave him a chance to pause. After dusting off his mountain bike and riding a few miles, he jumped head first into cycling and rode by himself from Boston to Seattle.

That experience led him to embrace plant-based eating and endurance sports and ultimately set the record for the fastest time to bike the U.S. from North to South. He talks about eating plants as his “cheat code” for supporting his endurance and is passionate about putting good into the world everywhere he goes!

Print Recipe

Fall Harvest Spinach Salad

Keyword

salad

Servings

Ingredients

• 4 cups fresh baby spinach chopped or other leafy green
• 1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa cooked according to package directions (1/2 cup dry quinoa)
• 3/4 cup butternut squash peeled into 1 inch cubes
• 1 medium apple chopped
• 1/3 cup pumpkin seeds or pecans
• 3 TBSP dried cranberries
• Tahini Apple Cider Vinegar Dressing
• 2 TBSP tahini
• 2 TBSP apple cider vinegar
• 2 TBSP lemon juice
• 2 TBSP low sodium tamari or aminos
• 4 TBSP nutritional yeast
• 2 tsp minced garlic about 2 cloves
• 2 tsp maple syrup

Keyword salad Servings Ingredients 4 cups fresh baby spinach chopped or other leafy green 1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa cooked according to package directions (1/2 cup dry quinoa) 3/4 cup butternut squash peeled into 1 inch cubes 1 medium apple chopped 1/3 cup pumpkin seeds or pecans 3 TBSP dried cranberries Tahini Apple Cider Vinegar Dressing 2 TBSP tahini 2 TBSP apple cider vinegar 2 TBSP lemon juice 2 TBSP low sodium tamari or aminos 4 TBSP nutritional yeast 2 tsp minced garlic about 2 cloves 2 tsp maple syrup

Instructions

1. Roast squash cubes at 400 for 30-40 minutes, turning once or twice until tender and lightly browned. If needed, cook quinoa according to package directions.
2. If needed, roast pepitas/pecans on a separate sheet in the oven for 5-10 minutes or until lightly brown.
3. Combine all dressing ingredients in a blender until very smooth.
4. Allow squash, quinoa and pepitas/pecans to cool. Just before serving, toss with all ingredients with dressing and enjoy!

Recipe Notes

Originally published at https://www.eatingbirdfood.com