Quinoa Butternut Squash Salad featuring roasted butternut squash, peppery arugula, crunchy toasted hazelnuts, a grain of your choosing and a creamy apple tahini dressing to bring it all together. It's fresh, filling and full of fall flavors!
PREP TIME: 15 minutesminutes
COOK TIME: 20 minutesminutes
TOTAL TIME: 35 minutesminutes
Servings: 6
Ingredients
For the salad
1mediumbutternut squash
2 tablespoonsolive oil, optional
½teaspooneach of salt and pepper
1 cup (170grams)quinoa , will equal about 3 cups of cooked quinoa
2 cups (480mls)water
4 cups (85 grams/ 3oz)arugula, some more or a bit less is fine though!
¾ cup (115grams)hazelnuts, see recipe notes for nut-free option
For the dressing
3tablespoonstahini , or almond, hazelnut or cashew butter
2tablespoonsunsweetened applesauce, or ¼ of a medium apple
1tablespoonextra virgin olive oil
2tablespoonsapple cider vinegar, or white wine vinegar
½teaspoonminced/crushed garlic
½teaspoonground cinnamon
¼teaspoonfine sea salt, plus more to taste
⅛teaspoonfreshly ground black pepper
1 to 2 tablespoonsmaple syrup
3 to 4tablespoonswater
INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat oven to 400°F (200 °C). While you are waiting peel, deseed and cut the butternut squash into small cubes about ½ inch across.
Peel, deseed and chop the butternut squash. Cut into small cubes about ½ inch across. Spread out on a large baking tray, toss with the optional olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for about 20 to 25 minutes or until just fork tender.
Cook the quinoa while the squash is roasting. Rinse it thoroughly in a sieve, then place in a saucepan with the water. Stir, cover with a lid and bring to a boil. Turn to medium and allow to simmer for 15 minutes then turn off the heat and leave it to sit without removing the lid for at least 10 minutes. Longer is fine. Then fluff with a fork before using. Or cook it in an Instant Pot. Rinse in a sieve, add to the Instant Pot with just 1 cup of water. Place the lid on, seal the vent and cook on manual for 2 minutes. Allow the pressure to release naturally then fluff with a fork.
Make the dressing. Simply add all of the dressing ingredients to a jar and whisk them together or shake it up. Start with just a little of the water and no maple syrup, then check the texture and sweetness. Add maple syrup to get the right sweetness for you, and enough water to get the texture you prefer. I like it with a bit of a tang and quite creamy. If you only have fresh apple you will need to blend everything in a blender.
Warm a small shallow pan over a medium heat and when hot add the hazelnuts. Roll them around in the pan for several minutes to toast them. They will start smelling toasty and nutty when done. Don't leave them alone as they will burn easily. Remove the pan from the heat and allow to cool.
Now it's time to assemble. Add the quinoa to a large bowl, then the arugula, butternut squash and hazelnuts. Let any juice from the butternut squash tray trickle in too. Drizzle over the dressing and toss well to combine.
NOTES
Nut-free option - Switch the hazelnuts for toasted seeds of choice and be sure to use tahini and not nut butter to make the dressing. Pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds or pine nuts (which are technically seeds despite their name) would all work well.Making ahead & storage - All of the components of this Quinoa Butternut Squash Salad can be prepared in advance. The dressing will keep for up to 3 days, the roasted squash and the quinoa for up to 3 days and the toasted nuts for a week or two. Just store them all (except the nuts) in the fridge before combining them. Once made the salad will hold up for a few hours after dressing. If you wish to store it for a longer amount of time I recommend storing the salad, and the dressing, and the toasted nuts in separate containers.