If I had it my way, Thanksgiving and every holiday dinner would just be a smorgasbord of sides on sides on sides. Having been my first Thanksgiving away from home and my 2nd Thanksgiving with no dairy or meat, I focused on making my side dishes absolutely FAHBOOSH. So to Pintrest I went! I found this AMAZING dish that has all the basics of a delicious fall salad. Use it for a holiday dish or for your meal prep to use for the week.
Apple Cider Butternut Kale Quinoa Salad
Ingredients
Salad:
1 cup uncooked tri-color quinoa
1 cup cubed and roasted butternut squash
1 apple, diced (I used a Gala apple)
1 green onion, thinly sliced
2 cups baby kale or spinach, chopped
1/3 cup dried cranberries
2 tablespoons toasted slivered almonds
Salt and pepper to taste
Cider vinaigrette for dressing the salad.
Instructions- Salad
Preheat oven to 400, add butternut squash with 1 tbsp of olive oil in oven and bake for 20-30 minutes
While butternut squash is in the oven, in a medium sized saucepan bring 2 cups of water to a boil.
Add quinoa
Reduce the heat to low, cover, let the quinoa cook for about 15 minutes or until all the water is absorbed.
Remove the quinoa from the heat and let it cool to room temperature.
Prepare the cider vinaigrette and set aside.
In a large bowl combine the cooled off quinoa, roasted butternut squash, apple, green onion, baby kale, dried cranberries, and almonds.
Mix in the desired amount of cider vinaigrette and season with salt and fresh ground pepper as needed.
Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve
Instructions- Vinaigrette
Cider Vinaigrette
1 cup apple cider
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons minced shallot
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
1 tablespoon maple syrup (not pancake syrup)
2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
In a small pot add the apple cider, vinegar, and shallots.
Bring to a boil over medium high heat.
Let it cook for 8 minutes
Remove from the heat and pour into a bowl
Mix in the remaining ingredients then add to salad
To work 1-on-1 with Jacqueline Renee click here
