My Kale and Butternut Squash Salad with Apples and Pumpkin Seeds is a little sweet, a little savory, warm, and hearty. It's a simply delicious addition to your next dinner spread.
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What is an easy, tasty and healthy salad recipe?
I've been making this Kale Butternut Squash Salad for Thanksgiving for a very long time. It's full of fall and wintery flavors thanks to a seasonal fruits and vegetables including avocado, squash, kale, apples, and pomegranates. They're all hearty, healthy, and immune-boosting, too!
This warm salad is a little sweet, a little savory, and has great crunch. It's simply delicious and a great addition to your next family dinner spread. You can also enjoy it as a hearty lunch! It'll fill you up with all the good stuff! Plus, it holds up great as leftovers.
Ingredients for this fall Kale Salad
Butternut Squash: I love how sweet and hearty this winter squash is. The flavor isn't overwhelming, making it easy to pair with other ingredients. We'll use about half a large butternut squash for this salad.
Olive Oil: You can use another neutral oil you prefer as well.
Salt + Pepper: To taste.
Kale: This green is PACKED with healthy nutrients and is a great salad base.
Quinoa: Adds such wonderful warmth and fluffiness to this salad. It's also full of amazing health benefits.
Fuji Apple Dressing: This is an incredible Panera Bread dressing. It truly brings this salad together!
Pomegranate Seeds: Tart and sweet, these add great flavor dimension.
Apple: I used a Honeycrisp apple. They're a little on the sweeter side.
Cranberries: I used dried cranberries.
Pumpkin Seeds: Not only do these add a nice crunch, but they're great for you.
Avocado: For some nice, creamy texture.
Tools & Equipment Needed
To bring this Kale Butternut Squash Salad together, you will need a cutting board, knife, serving bowl, measuring cups, sheet pan, vegetable peeler, salad tongs, and parchment paper.
How to make this Butternut Squash and Kale Salad
The first thing we'll want to do is roast the butternut squash. It's the most time consuming part of making this salad, so we need to get it out of the way first. Follow these steps for perfectly roasted butternut squash:
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Remove the skin on the squash with a vegetable peeler. Then, using a knife, slice the squash in half horizontally like a hot dog.
- Remove the seeds with a spoon. Then, chop into ¼”-¾” slices. Cut those slices into cubes.
- Add cubed squash to a sheet pan and toss with salt, pepper, and olive oil. You could even toss with a little Italian seasoning for some more flavor.
- Roast for 25-30 minutes. You may need more or less time depending on the size of the squash you used. Toss 2-3 times while cooking to ensure cubes are cooked equally.
While the butternut squash roasts, we can work on the rest of the salad: - Cook 1 cup of quinoa according to package instructions. You can also use a 90-second precooked quinoa packet. It's time efficient and still delicious!
- Dice your apple and slice your avocado.
- Chop kale and place in a bowl. Massage it for 2-3 minutes with the Fuji Apple Dressing. This will soften the kale (it can be quite stiff) and infuse it with flavor.
- Add apple, avocado, pumpkin seeds, pomegranate seeds, and dried cranberries to the bowl.
- When butternut squash is complete, remove from pan and add to the salad.
- Toss and enjoy!
Perfectly roasting butternut squash
Customize your butternut squash salad
While this salad is delicious on it's own, there are plenty of ways to mix and match ingredients and bulk it up. Here are some of my recommendations:
- Add a protein. You could add grilled shrimp, pork, or shredded chicken. Check out my Ninja Foodi Grilled Chicken Recipe for step by step instructions of perfectly prepared chicken.
- Change up the dressing. You could use a homemade lemon vinaigrette, Italian seasoning, or a creamy bleu cheese dressing.
- Throw in some cheese. This salad is dairy free as it is, but that doesn't mean a creamy gouda or crumbled goat cheese wouldn't taste amazing.
- Swap out the greens. I know kale isn't everyone's first choice. You could make this salad with a spring mix, spinach blend, or keep it simple with a cabbage slaw.
- Introduce new fruits. Use a different apple flavor or get wild with some pears. Berries, peaches, or plums would also taste delicious!
Step by step: building Kale Salad With Butternut Squash and Cranberries
Your questions, answered:
How should I store this salad?
It's best stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
How can I add flavor to my salad without dressing?
By making careful choices with your ingredients. If you want to skip the dressing, add a creamy, flavorful ingredient you can coat your other ingredients with. Avocado or a creamy flavored cheese would be my go-to options. You could also just use some olive oil.
Do you have any tips for success?
Seasoned ingredients are better! Massaging and infusing the kale with the flavor from the dressing and seasoning the squash are key.
Can I freeze this salad?
Do we freeze salads? No, silly. Wouldn’t recommend it. HOWEVER, you could prepare the butternut squash and then freeze it for when you need it. That would be suitable.
Is this suitable for meal prep?
Of course! Just store in the fridge and pull it out when you're ready to eat. Keep in mind that it stays freshest for up to 3 days.
Check out these other delicious salad recipes
Kale and Butternut Squash Salad Recipe
Equipment
- sheet pan
- Cutting Board
- Knife
- Measuring Cups
- Serving bowl
- Vegetable peeler
- Salad tongs
- parchment paper
Ingredients
- ½ large butternut squash
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1 cup quinoa
- 5 oz kale, chopped
- ½ cup Panera Bread Fuji Apple Dressing
- ½ cup pomegranate seeds
- ½ cup honeycrisp apple, chopped
- ½ avocado
- ¼ cup pumpkin seeds
- ¼ cup dried cranberries
Instructions
To roast the butternut squash
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Remove the skin on the squash with a vegetable peeler. Then, using a knife, slice the squash in half horizontally like a hot dog.
- Remove the seeds with a spoon. Then, chop into ¼”-¾” slices. Cut those slices into cubes.
- Add cubed squash to a sheet pan and toss with salt, pepper, and olive oil. You could even toss with a little Italian seasoning for some more flavor.
- Roast for 25-30 minutes. You may need more or less time depending on the size of the squash you used. Toss 2-3 times while cooking to ensure cubes are cooked equally.
Form the salad:
- Cook 1 cup of quinoa according to package instructions. You can also use a 90-second precooked quinoa packet. It's time efficient and still delicious!
- Dice your apple and slice your avocado.
- Chop kale and place in a bowl. Massage it for 2-3 minutes with the Fuji Apple Dressing. This will soften the kale (it can be quite stiff) and infuse it with flavor.
- Add apple, avocado, pumpkin seeds, pomegranate seeds, and dried cranberries to the bowl.
- When butternut squash is complete, remove from pan and add to the salad.
- Toss and enjoy!
Notes
I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below. It’s my passion to create dishes that can be shared with others. Tell me something you loved, something that you think it might need, or just say hi!
looking for this in MyFitnessPal?
If you're using MyFitnessPal, search 'A Paige Of Positivity' and find Kale and Butternut Squash Salad
1 serving (with dressing): 65 grams Carbs | 23 grams Fat | 12 grams Protein
**Disclaimer: for most accurate macronutrients and caloric breakdown, it is recommended that you input each ingredient into your MyFitnessPal food diary.
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