This quinoa spinach salad is loaded with fall favorites like butternut squash, chopped apples and quinoa. It is packed with nutrition and flavor and you’ll love the apple cider vinegar tahini dressing!
I typically go crazy with pumpkin recipes as soon as fall hits, but today I have a pumpkin-less recipe that features more fall produce favorites – butternut squash, apples and greens. I’ve been eating these things separately or in other dishes, but finally decided to throw them all together for a tasty meal-sized salad.
Hearty fall salads are seriously the best! In this Quinoa Spinach Salad, the roasted butternut squash makes it sweet and satisfying, while the apple and pepitas add a nice crunch. Quinoa adds some staying power and the spinach nourishes the body in a way that no other food (besides other leafy greens) can. If you like my garlicky kale salad, you’ll love this one because the dressing is almost exactly the same – I just added a little maple syrup to sweeten it up a bit. And if you enjoy this salad, you should also check out my full roundup of quinoa salad recipes.
Health Benefits of Quinoa
I love using quinoa as a base for salads. It’s naturally gluten-free, high in protein and one of few plant foods that contain all nine essential amino acids (source). Not only that, but it’s also high in fiber, magnesium, B vitamins, iron, potassium, calcium, phosphorus, vitamin E and various beneficial antioxidants! Talk about a powerhouse ingredient!
Unfamiliar with making quinoa? I’ve got a great guide on how to cook quinoa and it’s loaded with information about this little seed too.
Here’s What You Need
baby spinach and quinoa – the base of this meal-sized salad. You’ll need 1 1/2 cups of cooked quinoa which is 1/2 cup dry quinoa.
butternut squash – cut the squash into uniform, bite-size pieces so they roast evenly.
apple – I prefer to use Honeycrisp, Pink Lady or Fuji apples, but any variety will work. Uniform, bite sized pieces are ideal here too so you can get a bite with all the flavors together!
pepitas – pepitas are pumpkin seeds without the shell, but if you can’t find them you can use regular pumpkin seeds or even pecans for a nice added crunch. Roast them alongside the butternut squash for a roasted flavor boost.
dried cranberries – I love adding dried fruit to my salads for a little touch of sweetness and texture. Raisins would also be great in this recipe.
tahini apple cider vinegar dressing – tahini, apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, tamari, nutritional yeast, garlic and a touch of maple syrup make up this delicious salad dressing.
Steps to Build This Salad
Prep butternut squash – Prepare the squash by peeling it, cutting it in half and scraping out the seeds, then cut the squash into bite-size cubes. You can also buy pre-cut butternut squash to skip this step! Place on a lightly oiled baking sheet and roast at 400°F for 30-40 minutes, turning once or twice, until all the pieces are tender and have a few small brown spots.
Roast pepitas – If your pepitas or pecans are raw, you can toast them in the oven with the roasting squash. Spread seeds/nuts on a separate baking sheet and add to the oven with the butternut squash for 5 to 10 minutes or until the seeds/nuts are golden and crunchy, then remove from the pan to cool. Be sure to watch the seeds/nuts carefully because they can burn quickly. The pepitas will take less time to toast than the pecans because they’re smaller.
Assemble salad – While roasting the squash, toss together spinach, cooked quinoa, apple and cranberries in a large salad bowl. Add cooled pepitas (or pecans) once they’ve been toasted. Once the butternut squash is done roasting, allow it to cool and then place into the salad bowl with the other ingredients.
Make dressing – While while butternut squash is roasting, prepare the dressing by placing all remaining ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.
Serve – Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to coat. Serve immediately.
Switch it up!
You can easily swap some of the ingredients in this salad and get an entirely different meal that will be equally delicious!
Baby spinach – use another dark, leafy green like kale or collard greens. Arugula is a great salad base as well.
Apple – instead of apple, you could use pears or even jicama.
Pepitas – as mentioned above, you can also use pumpkin seeds or pecans. The idea here is to add some crunch so any kind of nut or seed will do!
Dried cranberries – raisins or dried cherries would also be tasty!
How to Serve Fall Quinoa Spinach Salad
For me, this is a meal-sized salad I would eat on its own. But it would also make a great side salad if you want to serve it to more people! Here are some great ideas to serve alongside this salad:
Loaded with fall favorites like butternut squash, chopped apples and dried cranberries, this fall harvest spinach salad is packed with nutrition and flavor.
Prepare the squash by peeling it, cutting it in half and scraping out the seeds.
Cut the squash into bite-size cubes, place on a lightly oiled baking sheet and roast at 400° for 30-40 minutes, turning once or twice, until all the pieces are tender and have a few small brown spots.
If your pepitas or pecans are raw, you can toast them in the oven with the roasting squash. Spread seeds/nuts on a separate baking sheet and add to the oven with the butternut squash for 5 to 10 minutes or until the seeds/nuts are golden and crunchy, then remove from the pan to cool. Be sure to watch the seeds/nuts carefully because they can burn quickly. The pepitas will take less time to toast than the pecans because they’re smaller.
While roasting the squash, toss together spinach, cooked quinoa, apple and cranberries in a large salad bowl. Add cooled pepitas (or pecans) once they’ve been toasted.
Prepare dressing by placing all remaining ingredients (tahini through maple syrup) in a blender and blend until smooth.
Once the butternut squash is done roasting, allow it to cool and then place into the salad bowl with the other ingredients. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to coat. Serve immediately.
Video
Notes
Baby spinach – use another dark, leafy green like kale or collard greens. Arugula is a great salad base as well.Butternut squash – try roasted sweet potatoes instead, or even cinnamon maple roasted Kabocha Squash.Apple – instead of apple, you could use pears or even jicama.Pepitas – as mentioned above, you can also use pumpkin seeds or pecans. The idea here is to add some crunch so any kind of nut or seed will do!Dried cranberries – raisins or dried cherries would also be tasty!
Delicious salad, full of different flavors and textures. The butternut squash was so soft and every ingredient played their part.
I used a quinoa that had basil and dehydrated tomatoes and also added its part.
I can imagine variations for my next try.
The only disappointment I got is how little it endured in our dishes… all this effort and love gone after just a couple of minutes.
(a glass of white wine goes perfect with this!)
We tried this salad tonight and it was delicious – a very flavorful, Fall salad! I didn’t have any butternut squash on hand so I substituted roasted sweet potatoes instead. Will try again with butternut squash but either way, we’ll definitely be adding this to our meal rotation! Thank you for sharing 🙂
Woo!! So happy to hear this salad was a hit, Megan! Roasted sweet potato is such a great substitute for the butternut squash. Thanks for the review. I really appreciate it!
Haven’t tried the salad yet as I’m meal prepping for my upcoming week. Ingredient list/ directions would be more helpful if they told you how much uncooked quinoa would make 1 1/2 cups of cooked quinoa. Now I am stuck with a huge pile of quinoa 🤦🏽♀️.
Hey Ashley – Thanks for the feedback, sorry about the confusion. I just added how 1.5 cups of cooked quinoa = 1/2 cup dry quinoa. Let me know what you think of this salad!
This salad has all the flavors of Fall!🍁🍂 We did take an extra step and coated the squash with a small amount of coconut oil, cinnamon and sea salt just to add to the fall vibe…other than that the dressing and all the other components of this salad are super tasty!! ❤️❤️❤️
Leave a Comment
this was absolutely delicious. I also added roasted Brussel sprouts. the dressing makes all the difference
thanks for another winner!
Absolutely! I am so glad to hear that you are loving this recipe, Nancy! Thank you for sharing your review + star rating, it means so much to me!
Delicious salad, full of different flavors and textures. The butternut squash was so soft and every ingredient played their part.
I used a quinoa that had basil and dehydrated tomatoes and also added its part.
I can imagine variations for my next try.
The only disappointment I got is how little it endured in our dishes… all this effort and love gone after just a couple of minutes.
(a glass of white wine goes perfect with this!)
We tried this salad tonight and it was delicious – a very flavorful, Fall salad! I didn’t have any butternut squash on hand so I substituted roasted sweet potatoes instead. Will try again with butternut squash but either way, we’ll definitely be adding this to our meal rotation! Thank you for sharing 🙂
Woo!! So happy to hear this salad was a hit, Megan! Roasted sweet potato is such a great substitute for the butternut squash. Thanks for the review. I really appreciate it!
Haven’t tried the salad yet as I’m meal prepping for my upcoming week. Ingredient list/ directions would be more helpful if they told you how much uncooked quinoa would make 1 1/2 cups of cooked quinoa. Now I am stuck with a huge pile of quinoa 🤦🏽♀️.
Hey Ashley – Thanks for the feedback, sorry about the confusion. I just added how 1.5 cups of cooked quinoa = 1/2 cup dry quinoa. Let me know what you think of this salad!
This salad has all the flavors of Fall!🍁🍂 We did take an extra step and coated the squash with a small amount of coconut oil, cinnamon and sea salt just to add to the fall vibe…other than that the dressing and all the other components of this salad are super tasty!! ❤️❤️❤️
So happy to hear you loved this salad, Suzy! Thanks so much for the review and the star rating. It means so much to me.