As the autumn the leaves begin to turn beautiful shades of red and the sunny days become crisp, I find myself reaching for hardier salads like this Sweet Autumn Salad. This salad has all of my favourite autumn flavours like roasted cinnamon butternut squash, dried cranberries, crisp apples, walnuts and dates. Sweet Autumn Salad is topped with a creamy Balsamic Maple Dressing that really brings the flavours together. This autumn salad makes an excellent vegan gluten-free addition to your Thanksgiving spread.

Butternut Squash

Butternut Squash is part of the winter squash family along with pumpkins, acorn squash, buttercup squash and kabocha. It is one of the most concentrated vegetable sources of alpha-linolenic acid, which is an omega 3 fatty acid that is important for heart health. The beautiful deep orange and yellow colour of butternut squash make it high in phytonutrients and an excellent source of vitamin A. Vitamin A plays a key role in lung health by protecting the lungs from the damaging effect of cigarette smoke. Butternut squash is also an excellent source of energy producing vitamin B1 and B5 along with free radical scavenging manganese.

Butternut squash can be a bit of a challenge to cut up and definitely requires a sharp knife and a strong arm. To see step by step pictures showing how I prepare butternut squash, check out my extremely popular Roasted Butternut Squash Soup Recipe.

If you were a fan of my old blog Out To Lunch Creations, you may have noticed that I post a lot of salad recipes. This is because I LOVE salads and I eat them every day for lunch. When you eat salad 5-7 times a week, you have to get creative in the kitchen.  In the summer I like to enjoy salads with raw cooling ingredients while fresh summer produce is abundant at farmer’s markets. As autumn comes along and through the winter, I like to add cooked warming ingredients to my salad like roasted butternut squash, roasted sweet potatoes, quinoa, rice and crispy chickpeas. This is why I created Sweet Autumn Salad.

Sweet Autumn Salad

(gluten free, vegan)

Prep time: 20 minutes | Cook time: 40 minutes | Serving size: 4 large salads or 8 side salads

Ingredients:

• 3 cups raw butternut squash, peeled and diced into 1cm cubes
• ¼ cup coconut oil, melted
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup green lentils, rinsed
• 1 cup walnuts
• 10 dates, chopped
• 1 cup dried cranberries
• 2 fall apples, diced
• 8 oz baby spinach, washed

Balsamic Maple Dressing

• 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 2 Tbsp maple syrup
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. Toss butternut squash in 2 Tbsp coconut oil, cayenne pepper and cinnamon and bake for 30 minutes, flipping occasionally.
3. While the butternut squash is roasting, heat 2 Tbsp of coconut oil in a large frying pan on medium heat. Add the onions and cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally until browned.
4. Meanwhile, place the rinsed lentils in 1.5 cups of water and bring to a boil. simmer for 15-20 minutes until al dente.
5. Whisk together balsamic vinegar, maple syrup, olive oil, Dijon mustard and salt and pepper.
6. When the butternut squash, caramelised onions and lentils are done, toss them with the walnuts, dates, dried cranberries, apples and dressing and serve over spinach. You can serve Sweet Autumn Salad warm or chilled.

 Are you a salad eater? Share your favourite salad recipe in the comments section.