Description
This Pumpkin Quinoa Salad is the perfect seasonal lunch or dinner recipe. It's packed with hearty ingredients like roasted pumpkin, warm quinoa, and crisp kale making it extra filling and delicious.
Ingredients
Salad:
- 3/4 cup dry quinoa, cooked according to package directions.
- 4 cups pie pumpkin, peeled, seeds removed and diced into 1/2 inch pieces
- 1/4 cup shallots (~2 shallots), diced
- 1 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 4 cups chopped spinach or baby kale
- 1/2 cup chopped, toasted walnuts
- 1/3 cup dried cranberries
Orange Balsamic Dressing:
- 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons orange juice
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375˚F/190˚C.
- Prepare the quinoa according to package directions. Set aside to cool.
- Peel the pumpkin and use a spoon to remove the seeds. Dice pumpkin into ½-inch cubes.
- Add to a bowl and toss with the shallots, olive oil, salt, thyme, cinnamon, garlic powder, and pepper until well coated.
- Transfer to a baking sheet and roast for 25-30 minutes, stirring once or twice, until fork tender.
- Whisk together the dressing ingredients in a small bowl.
- In a large bowl, combine kale, roasted pumpkin, cooked quinoa, walnuts, and cranberries. Pour the dressing over and toss well to coat.
Notes
Storage: This salad stores well in the refrigerator for up to a week. Don't worry about keeping the dressing separate – it actually tastes even better when you let the salad sit overnight.
Pumpkin: If you can't find a pie pumpkin, feel free to substitute with kabocha, butternut or acorn squash.
Cranberries: We prefer using unsweetened dried cranberries in most of our recipes, but you can also use sweetened if you prefer the flavor.
Orange juice: Feel free to use freshly squeezed or store bought in the vinaigrette.
Shallots: You can also sub with yellow or red onion.
Walnuts: Feel free to substitute with pecans or another nut of choice. To keep this pumpkin quinoa salad nut free, try used pumpkin or sunflower seeds.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Category: Salads
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 412
- Sugar: 12.6 g
- Sodium: 701 mg
- Fat: 28.7 g
- Carbohydrates: 36.9 g
- Fiber: 4.6 g
- Protein: 7.4 g
