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    Quinoa Salad with Roasted Butternut Squash, Feta, Pine Nuts

    Published: Nov 01, 2014 / 19 Comments

    112.5K shares
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    Recipe Print

    Healthy Quinoa Salad with Roasted Butternut Squash, Pine Nuts, Caramelized Onions, and Feta cheese, with French Vinaigrette or Italian salad dressing. Healthy, meatless, gluten-free recipe, packed with anti-oxidants (squash) and protein (quinoa).

    Healthy Quinoa Salad with Roasted Butternut Squash, Pine Nuts, Caramelized Onions and Feta cheese, with French Vinaigrette salad dressing

    This delicious quinoa salad is perfect for the Fall and holidays.  It will look great on your Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Year's Eve menu.  And it's a great way to use butternut squash a little bit differently than usual. All ingredients match one another really well, and the salad dressing is so good! I've been eating this for lunch for days now, and this salad keeps you full and satisfied for a long time.

    Healthy Quinoa Salad with Roasted Butternut Squash, Pine Nuts, Caramelized Onions and Feta cheese, with French Vinaigrette salad dressing

    Roast butternut squash

    First, you will need to peel the squash, slice it into ¾ inch cubes and roast it in the oven until soft.

    cubed butternut squash on a cutting board (process shot)

    Cook quinoa

    Here is how to make cooked quinoa (what the recipe calls for) easily and quickly.  You will only need half of this amount, because 1 cup of uncooked quinoa makes 3 cups of cooked quinoa, and you'll only need 1 and ½ cups of cooked quinoa for this salad.

    • Add 1 cup of uncooked quinoa, ¼ teaspoon of salt and 2 cups of water to a large sauce pan. Bring to boil.
    • Reduce to medium simmer and cook, covered, for about 20 minutes.
    • Remove from heat, stir the quinoa with the spoon. Cover the pan with lid, and let the quinoa rest in the pan for about 10 minutes.
    • Yield: 1 cup of uncooked quinoa yields 3 cups of cooked quinoa.

    cooked quinoa in a pan (process shot

    Caramelize onions

    You will also need to have caramelized onions. Caramelize the onions according to these instructions:

    caramelized onions in a skillet (process shot)

    How to assemble quinoa salad

    Start assembling the salad. Combine cooked quinoa and roasted butternut squash:

    combine quinoa and butternut squash (step-by-step photos)

    Add caramelized onions:

    add caramelized onions to quinoa and butternut squash (step-by-step photos)

    Right before you're ready to serve, add the salad dressing, and top with Feta cheese and toasted pine nuts:

    add feta cheese and pine nuts to quinoa salad (step-by-step photos)

    By the way, for the dressing I highly recommend Brianna's French Vinaigrette salad dressing. That's what I've used with this salad, and it's perfect! The dressing is budget-friendly, and you can buy it at Walmart. It's gluten-free, with no high fructose corn syrup, and no added MSG. And, most importantly, it tastes so good! Or, use a similar dressing.  Or, make your own, using this recipe for French Vinaigrette Salad Dressing. You can also use your favorite Italian salad dressing.

    4.86 from 7 votes

    Quinoa Salad with Roasted Butternut Squash, Feta, and Pine Nuts

    Healthy Quinoa Salad with Roasted Butternut Squash, Pine Nuts, Caramelized Onions and Feta cheese, with French Vinaigrette salad dressing. Healthy, vegetarian, meatless, gluten free recipe, packed with anti-oxidants (squash) and protein (quinoa).
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 30 mins
    Cook Time 20 mins
    Total Time 50 mins
    Course Salad
    Cuisine American
    Servings 6 servings
    Calories per serving 354 kcal
    Author: Julia

    Ingredients

    • 1 ½ cups quinoa cooked
    • 1 onion sliced
    • ½ butternut squash medium size
    • 3 tablespoons olive oil
    • salt
    • ¼ cup French Vinaigrette salad dressing or Italian dressing
    • ¼ cup Feta cheese
    • ¼ cup pine nuts toasted

    Instructions 

    How to roast butternut squash:

    • Preheat the oven to 400 F. Line the baking sheet with aluminum foil and grease with 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
    • Peel the squash and slice it into ¾ inch cubes. You will only need ½ of the medium size squash. Toss the squash cubes in a large bowl with 2 tablespoons olive oil and generously sprinkle with salt.
    • Put butternut squash on the greased baking sheet and roast for about 30 minutes, until soft. Flip the squash cubes over midway through baking. Let it cool slightly before adding to the salad.

    How to caramelize onions:

    • Caramelize onions according to the instructions here.

    Assembling quinoa salad:

    • In a large bowl, combine cooked quinoa, roasted butternut squash, caramelized onions, and mix with the dressing. Add the dressing only before the serving, and add as much as you want to individual portions, as both quinoa and butternut squash tend to be on a dry side, and this dressing (when generously applied) fixes this beautifully!
    • Top each individual serving of quinoa salad with Feta cheese and toasted pine nuts.
    • Note: The quinoa salad keeps very well refrigerated for up to 4 days, but only without dressing. Add the dressing only before serving.

    Nutrition

    Nutrition Information
    Quinoa Salad with Roasted Butternut Squash, Feta, and Pine Nuts
    Amount per Serving
    Calories
    354
    % Daily Value*
    Fat
     
    20
    g
    31
    %
    Saturated Fat
     
    3
    g
    19
    %
    Cholesterol
     
    5
    mg
    2
    %
    Sodium
     
    75
    mg
    3
    %
    Potassium
     
    519
    mg
    15
    %
    Carbohydrates
     
    37
    g
    12
    %
    Fiber
     
    4
    g
    17
    %
    Sugar
     
    2
    g
    2
    %
    Protein
     
    8
    g
    16
    %
    Vitamin A
     
    6670
    IU
    133
    %
    Vitamin C
     
    14.5
    mg
    18
    %
    Calcium
     
    85
    mg
    9
    %
    Iron
     
    2.8
    mg
    16
    %
    * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

    The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

    Keyword healthy quinoa recipes, quinoa and butternut squash, quinoa salad
    Tried this recipe?Be sure to leave a comment and provide a Star Rating below - I love your feedback and try to respond to every comment!
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. phil milan

      November 08, 2021 at 10:43 am

      What a wonderful salad to have. Will serve it again.

      Thanks

      Phil

      Reply
      • Julia

        November 10, 2021 at 8:21 pm

        So happy you gave this recipe a try and enjoyed it! 🙂

        Reply
    2. Melissa L.

      May 03, 2021 at 2:44 am

      I’ve not made quinoa or butternut squash often and this was absolutely delicious.

      Reply
    3. Amy C

      November 08, 2019 at 9:34 am

      Quick Tip: Make the Quinoa in a pressure cooker, and add the butternut squash & caramelized Onions when the quinoa is done cooking. It’s one less pot to watch and this keeps the salad warm throughout your meal. Add feta, pine nuts & dressing to individual serving bowls.

      Reply
    4. chris

      September 23, 2018 at 10:05 am

      What is the greenery

      Reply
      • Julia

        October 05, 2018 at 3:46 pm

        I think it was finely chopped spinach. You can also use chopped parsley or cilantro.

        Reply
    5. Megan

      January 18, 2017 at 8:54 pm

      Silly question... do you eat it warm or cold?

      Reply
      • Julia

        January 31, 2017 at 2:18 am

        It's great either way.

        Reply
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