Festive Autumn Salad

5 from 1 vote

Festive Harvest Autumn Salad is filled with roasted butternut squash, arugula, pomegranate, cranberries and a ginger citrus dressing, and candied pecans.

Cook Time45 mins

Total Time45 mins

Course: Sides

Cuisine: American

Servings:

Calories: 461kcal

Author: HWC Magazine

Ingredients

Roasted Butternut Squash

1 whole butternut squash cut in half, deseeded. peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
1 tablespoon coconut oil
1 teaspoon cinnamon ground

Wild Rice

1 cup brown and wild rice
cooked per package instructions (we like to cook ours in a vegan broth for added flavor)

Candied Pecans

1 cup pecans whole or pieces
1 teaspoon cinnamon ground
2 coconut sugar (can use brown sugar if not following a paleo diet)

Ginger Maple Citrus Dressing

2 tablespoon lemon juice fresh
2 tablespoon orange juice fresh
⅓ cup olive oil
1 inch knob ginger root fresh peeled and grated
2-3 tablespoon maple syrup (depending on how sweet you like it)
½ teaspoon cinnamon ground
salt and pepper to taste

Salad Fixings

2 cups rocket (arugula)
2 cups spinach
fresh
4 tablespoon pomegranate seeds
½ cup cranberries dried and low sugar

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Bake the butternut squash. Preheat oven to 400 degree F (204 degrees celsius). Toss the peeled 1 inch prepped butternut squash cubes in the coconut oil, cinnamon and salt and pepper to taste. Bake for about 20-25 minutes or until the butternut squash is fork tender.
Cook your brown and wild rice mixture according to package instructions.- about 40 minutes or until fork tender (Adding brown and wild rice to the salad is optional but I find that this makes this salad a complete meal) You could also add lentil instead.
Make your stovetop candied pecans. In a small pan add your pecans, cinnamon and coconut sugar and turn the heat on low and allow the sugar to melt and stir gently so that all the pecans are coated. (about 2 minutes) Sometimes I like to also sprinkle just a dash of chili powder in the mix as well... Trust me these are addictive so you might want to make a little extra so you can snack along the way.
Make your ginger maple citrus dressing. In a bowl add your lemon juice, orange juice, olive oil, grated ginger, maple syrup, cinnamon and salt and pepper to taste. If you do not have a lemon you can exchange with apple cider vinegar. Stir and set aside.
Assemble the Festive Autumn Salad. Toss together the rocket, spinach, pomegranate seeds, dried cranberries in a bowl. Sprinkle with the stove top candied pecans and drizzle and toss with ginger citrus maple syrup dressing. Enjoy!

Notes

If bringing the Festive Autumn Salad as a dish to pass, place all the items in a bowl, except serve the stove top candied pecans and dressing on the side so it does not get soggy while you are waiting to eat

Nutrition