Roasted Butternut Squash Salad
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Published Feb 12, 2021, Updated Sep 14, 2021
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This vibrant roasted butternut squash salad features kale, dried cranberries and roasted walnuts in an easy balsamic dressing.
As you may or may not know, I love kale. It’s loaded with good-for-you nutrients like iron, calcium, vitamins A, C and K, and a host of antioxidants. I’ll add kale to just about any dish, but I think salads are where kale really shines.
This recipe is basically vintage at this point! I made it in 2012 for a Thanksgiving party and it was such a hit that I shared it on the blog. Since then, the photos have gotten a few face lifts, but the recipe has stayed the same. I’m sharing it again because it’s such a good recipe, I think it needs more time in the spotlight!
Butternut Squash Salad Ingredients
- lacinato kale (aka dinosaur kale) – I love using lacinto kale in this recipe! If you’re not a huge fan of kale, I recommend starting with lacinto kale. It’s a little more mild tasting in my opinion!
- spring mix
- dried cranberries – These add just the right amount of sweetness to this salad!
- kalamata olives
- walnuts – you could use any type of nut you’d prefer, but I really love the way walnuts taste in this salad.
- bell pepper – any color will do. I like using red, orange or yellow.
- butternut squash – if you’re not a fan of butternut squash, you could also use roasted sweet potatoes
- olive oil
- balsamic vinegar
- sea salt and black pepper
How to Make Roasted Butternut Squash
The first step of this recipe is to make the roasted butternut squash. This step takes the longest so be sure to start this first!
You’ll start by preheating your oven to 400ºF. Cut the bottom of your squash to create a stable base and then use a vegetable peeler to remove the skin. After peeling, cut off the top of the squash and then cut in half lengthwise. Scrape out the seeds with a spoon.
Cut the squash into 1-inch cubes and toss the in olive oil and sea salt. Spread the cubes onto a baking sheet and roast for 30-40 minutes, turning once or twice during cooking. The butternut squash is ready when all of the pieces are tender and some have brown spots.
Assembling the Salad
Toast walnuts – while the butternut squash is roasting, toast the walnuts on a separate baking sheet for 6-8 minutes in the oven heated to 400ºF. Remove and let cool before chopping into bite sized pieces.
Prep kale – Stack the kale leaves and roll into tight bundles. Use a sharp knife to slice the rolls thinly to create shredded pieces.
Rehydrate cranberries – Pour 1/2 cup of water over the cranberries and leave them to soften until you’re ready to toss the salad. You’ll drain the water before adding the cranberries to the salad. (This step is optional.)
Make dressing – Whisk the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, sea salt and pepper in your salad bowl.
Assemble – Add all of the salad ingredients to the bowl with the dressing and toss to combine. Let the salad marinate in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to 1 hour before serving. The longer the kale marinates, the softer it will become.
More Kale Salads to Try:
- Garlicky Kale Salad
- Massaged Kale Salad
- Kale & Cabbage Pad Thai Salad
- Kale and Brussels Sprout Salad
- Butternut Squash Kale Salad
- Sweet Potato Kale and Quinoa Salad
- Detox Salad
- Kale Salad with Peanut Dressing
More Healthy Salad Dressing Ideas:
- Mexican Goddess Dressing
- Maple Dressing
- Avocado Ranch Dressing
- Lemon Vinaigrette
- Turmeric Tahini Dressing
- Avocado Caesar Dressing
- Chili Almond Dressing
- Zesty Tahini
Roasted Butternut Squash Salad
Ingredients
- 1 large bunch of Lacinato kale, washed and de-stemmed
- 2 cups of spring mix
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- 1/3 cup of kalamata olives, pitted and cut into slivers
- 1/2 cup raw walnuts
- 1 red or yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
- 1 small butternut squash
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
Dressing
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven: Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Prep squash: Prepare the squash by peeling it, cutting it in half and scraping out the seeds. Cut the squash into 1 inch cubes, toss them 1 Tablespoon olive oil, salt and pepper. Spread the cubes onto a baking sheet.
- Roast squash: Roast the squash for 30-40 minutes, turning once or twice, until all the pieces are tender and some have brown spots.
- Toast walnuts: While roasting the squash, toast the walnuts on a separate baking sheet for about 6-8 minutes in the 400° oven.
- Cool: Remove both items from oven when finished cooking and let cool. Once walnuts are cool enough to handle, chop them into bite-size pieces.
- Slice kale: While butternut is roasting, stack the kale leaves and roll them into tight bundles, then slice very thinly with a sharp knife to create shredded pieces.
- Soften cranberries: Pour 1/2 cup of water over the cranberries and leave them to soften until you are ready to toss the salad. Drain before adding to the salad. (This step is optional).
- Make dressing: In your salad bowl, whisk together dressing by combining olive oil, balsamic, sea salt and pepper. Add all the remaining salad ingredients and toss everything together. Let the salad marinate in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to an hour before serving. Serve cold or at room temp.
- Store: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge. It should last 1-2 days.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Photos by Ashley McLaughlin.
The salad looks great! And so does your tree. We decorated this past weekend as well. It feels so good to have the Christmas spirit take over. 🙂
Love the tree! Looks great 🙂
I love kale but it’s hard to find a decent batch at my local store. The tree is beautiful!
This salad looks awesome Britt!! I definitely would like to try it. I am trying to get myself to yoga this Thursday, hopefully I’ll see ya there 🙂 Happy Wednesday!!
Kale is such a versatile and good-for-you food. I really love any food or ingredient that’s easy to prepare, tastes great, and helps you meet your nutritional goals.
I’m always up for some kale – this looks amazing, thanks Brittany!
Bless your heart. My kale-dar just exploded. 🙂
Your ornaments are precious! It makes me want to put up a tree. And your kale salad? Delicious as always. Thank you for tempting me with this post. I’m hungry now! I hope you have a lovely end to your week. I can’t believe it is already Thursday! Hugs and love from Austin.
I love butternut squash, but it is such a pain to peel and chop up. Any tips to make this chore easier? THx
Hi Kathy. If you’d like you can simply cut the squash in half, remove the seeds and roast it for 30-40 minutes or until the squash is soft. Take it out of the oven and cool, then it’s easier to chop it into cubes. My boyfriend and I do it this way a lot and we even eat the skin, as it gets soft and palatable after cooking. 🙂
If you’d rather not do it that way, here’s a whole post on how to peel and cut a b-nut squash http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/how_to_peel_and_cut_a_butternut_squash/
Hope this helps.
THANKS! I am def. going to try your method! I would have never thought to try that!
Love that owl ornament…so adorable!
No, your love for kale isn’t strange! I LOVE kale, too! And if loving kale is dorky, then I don’t want to be cool. 😉
we do white lights and our hodge podge of ornaments on our tree, too! i really like the owl ornament. so cute!!
i really like kale, but have only tried it raw one way (otherwise i just make/burn kale chips). i’ll definitely try one or several of the recipes you suggested!
Made your holiday kale salad today with a few substitutions – goat cheese instead of feta, sweet potato instead of squash, and butternut squash seed oil instead of walnut. Still turned out great! Love it!
Hi Alyssa, I’m so glad that you liked the kale salad. Goat cheese and sweet potato sound like great substitutions.
I love kale, too, and am always trying to find food I can make ahead of time. I have a question for you about how you do this. Do you prepare it all and refrigerate it and then bring it to room temp the next day? Thanks!
This looks great! but for the dressing at the end – should the salad be tossed in both the tbsp of walnut oil and tbsp of olive oil or is the olive oil intended just for the roasting of the squash?
thank you!
This looks so good! The walnuts will give it the perfect amount of crunch. And the green and yellow are so pretty together!
The salad sounds JUST like a Greek winter salad 🙂 Yum!! And the new pics are beautiful!!
WOW! Gorgeous salad Brittany. Perfect for the colder weather. Love this.
I love how colourful it looks! So fall and wintery and warm.
– Charmaine
http://charmainenyw.com
Wow!! beautiful salad and beautiful blog!!! It’s been awhile since I visited your website…I have been so busy with school!! Anyways, I do get your emails and fallow you on insta as well.. keep up the good work=) Love what you put out there!!
What a beautiful salad! It will be a great addition to the holiday table! I love kale too and can’t wait to try this!
Just made this salad in my college dorm kitchen (lol) but oh my so delicious!!
You know, Brittany, I am generally not big on recipes from the internet. But ALL of your recipes interest me, and ALL of them that I have tried have been Delicious, Fun to prepare, and Healthy! Thank you for making a contribution to my good eating and happiness! ❤
Aww that makes me so happy to hear, Miriam. So glad you’re loving the recipes. Thanks for making them and for coming back to leave a review. I really appreciate it. 🙂
Any recipe that my husband loves is a huge winner! Wonderfully balanced salad. Yummy and so easy to make.
Woo!! So glad this salad was a hit, Tessa. Thanks for making it and for coming back to leave a review. I so appreciate it!
This salad was amazing !!! I made it exactly like the recipe and we enjoyed it with chili for dinner !!!
So glad you loved this salad!! Thanks for making it and for coming back to leave a review, Sally. I so appreciate it!
Another knockout recipe! Such a filling and tasty salad. Already looking forward to leftovers!
Yay! This makes me so happy to hear, Jaclyn! Thanks so much for the review. I so appreciate it!!
What an amazing Salad. Had it as a main meal tonight. It was delicious and satisfying.
Ahh yay!! So glad you loved this salad, Louise. Thanks for coming back to leave a review. I so appreciate it!
Gosh, this is good! Seconds were inevitable
Yay! I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for the review 🙂
I love this salad! I go on kicks making it a few times a week. Perfection!
Ah yay!! I’m so pumped you enjoyed this salad, Jennifer. Thanks so much for trying it out and coming back to leave a review. I really appreciate it!!
thanks so much for this recipe! This was delicious! I did massage my kale with lemon zest, salt and a little olive oil to soften it. My partner says this is her new favorite salad!
Happy to hear this salad was a hit, Alyssa. Thanks for the review!
Looks absolutely delicious 😋😋
Thank you so much! Hope you enjoy!
THIS SALAD IS FANTASTIC THANK YOU!!! Made this last friday and packed in a mason jar for today. Was absolutely delish! Left out the avocado with the wait time and it was still worthy of company!! Dressing is sensational too. Used a bit of fancy aged fig balsamic with my standard balsamic. YUMMY!!
WOO! This is seriously the best, Suzi. I am so glad you’re loving this salad and it turned out great for you. The fig balsamic sounds like the perfect addition to this salad. Thank you for sharing your review + star rating, it means so much to me!