Butternut squash salad made with roasted butternut squash, pecans and dried cranberries, topped with an apple cider vinaigrette. So good!
Okay, this roasted butternut squash salad may be my favorite salad ever.
First off, nothing beats roasted butternut squash. It’s the shizzle. Pair it with baby spinach, aragula, pecans, dried cranberries and vegan feta, and then drizzle it with an apple cider vinaigrette and you’re in salad heaven.
This salad blends creamy, salty and sweet fabulously well, with the contrasts in textures adding another layer of deliciousness to the whole deal.
And if you love a good salad then check out our vegan caesar salad and vegan chickpea salad as well as our vegan kale salad and quinoa salad!
How To Make Roasted Butternut Squash Salad
You will find full instructions and measurements in the recipe card at the bottom of the post. This is a summary of the process to go along with the process photos.
- Add peeled and chopped butternut squash to a mixing bowl. Add olive oil, sea salt and black pepper and toss so that the butternut squash is evenly coated.
- Transfer to a parchment lined baking tray and bake at 400°F for 30 minutes until roasted.
- Add baby spinach, arugula, chopped pecans and dried cranberries to a mixing bowl.
- Mix up your apple cider vinaigrette by adding extra virgin olive oil, apple cider vinegar, maple syrup, dijon mustard, crushed garlic and sea salt to a measuring jug and whisking it up until well mixed.
- Pour some of the dressing over your salad mix and toss. Move to your serving dish, or if serving in the same bowl, leave it where it is.
- Top it with the roasted butternut squash, vegan feta and some extra chopped pecans and dried cranberries. Drizzle over dressing and serve.
Recipe Tips
A mix of baby spinach and arugula is a delicious mix of greens in this salad. However, you can use either/or if you prefer. Arugula is also called ‘Rocket’ in some parts of the world.
Pecans: The chopped pecans are a delicious flavor blend and texture contrast in this salad. Walnuts would also work great here.
Vegan Feta: We used the Violife brand of vegan feta in this salad which was delicious. We also do have a recipe for homemade vegan feta on this blog, so if you have more time to spare and want to make your own, that is a great option too. You can also omit the vegan feta entirely and use something like chopped avocado instead.
The Dressing: The dressing is a delicious apple cider vinaigrette that works wonderfully with the flavors of this salad. It makes quite a lot. We used all of it in this salad, but if you prefer to use less and have some leftover, then leftovers will keep very well in the fridge for a week.
Storing
This salad is best served fresh, but leftovers will keep for 3-4 days in the fridge.
More Delicious Vegan Salad Recipes
- Vegan Greek Salad
- Vegan Sweet Potato Salad
- Vegan Couscous Salad
- Marinated Tofu Salad
- Vegan Potato Salad
- Vegan Macaroni Salad
Roasted Butternut Squash Salad
Ingredients
For the Roasted Butternut Squash:
- 4 cups Butternut Squash (600g) Peeled and Cubed
- 1 Tbsp Olive Oil Extra Virgin
- ⅛ tsp Sea Salt
- ⅛ tsp Ground Black Pepper
For the Salad:
- 3 cups Baby Spinach (90g)
- 3 cups Arugula (90g)
- ½ cup Pecans (55g) Chopped
- 2 Tbsp Dried Cranberries
- ½ cup Vegan Feta (80g) Crumbled
For the Apple Cider Vinaigrette:
- ⅓ cup Olive Oil (80ml) Extra Virgin
- ¼ cup Apple Cider Vinegar (60ml)
- 2 Tbsp Maple Syrup
- ½ tsp Dijon Mustard
- ½ tsp Crushed Garlic
- ½ tsp Sea Salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
- Add peeled and chopped butternut squash to a mixing bowl. Add olive oil, sea salt and black pepper and toss so that the butternut squash is evenly coated.
- Transfer to a parchment lined baking tray and bake for 30 minutes until roasted.
- Add the baby spinach, arugula, chopped pecans and dried cranberries to a mixing bowl.
- Mix up your apple cider vinaigrette by adding all the ingredients to a measuring jug and whisking it up until well mixed.
- Pour some of the dressing over your salad mix and toss. Move to a serving dish, or if you're serving it in the same bowl, leave it where it is.
- Add the the roasted butternut squash, crumbled vegan feta and some extra chopped pecans and dried cranberries to the top of the salad.
- Drizzle the dressing over the top and serve.
Notes
- Walnuts or other nuts can be used in place of the pecans.
- We used the Violife brand of vegan feta in this salad which was delicious. We also do have a recipe for homemade vegan feta on this blog, so if you have more time to spare and want to make your own, that is a great option too. You can also omit the vegan feta entirely and use something like chopped avocado instead.
- We used all the dressing in this salad, but it does make quite a lot, so if you prefer not to use it all and have some leftover, then leftover dressing will keep very well in the fridge for a week.
- This salad is best served fresh, but leftovers will keep well for 3-4 days in the fridge.
I had some leftover non-vegan feta and some baby spinach going bad, and I had all the other ingredients except the arugula, so I threw this together, and even without the arugula, it was very good. The vinaigrette on its own was sick! I plan to make the vinaigrette again for other salads. As an omnivore who often eats vegetarian, this dinner salad proved to be a great pantry meal.
So glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for the great review Marsha!
Delicious, way above expectations – thank you!
Awesome! Thanks Mary! 🙂
Hi Byrne, yes you can! When they’re roasted like this the seeds and skin are also very delicious. 🙂
You don’t have to with this as it’s not a super thick sauce, so even if your blender is less powerful it should still manage this okay. The main reason I see for soaking them first is to make blending easier, so if you have a powerful blender like a Vitamix then you can usually skip it, and if you don’t, then you only really have to do it when it’s going to be very thick, if there’s enough liquid, it’s usually unnecessary.
Thnx!
I LOVE your recipes. Simple, easy for a non-cook with minimum ingredients that taste amazing.
I’m addicted to the roasted butternut squash.
Thank you and keep posting please.
Thank you so much Lisa! 🙂
This salad is delectable!
Superb mix of ingredients to make a delicious and unusual salad.