Autumn Salad Amongst Butternut Squash, Apples, Cranberries & Candied Pecans

A salubrious & gorgeous autumn salad featuring vibrant seasonal ingredients similar roasted butternut squash, dried cranberries, crisp apple, leafy greens, as well as quick candied pecans all tossed inward a tangy apple tree cider vinaigrette. Bring this salad to all your autumn gatherings to wow your friends & family! (gluten-free, grain-free & vegetarian) 

When I visited Breckenridge dorsum inward September, I created this large leafy salad to serve at a potluck gathering. I chose about of my favorite salad toppings equally the heart elements: semi-sweet apple, abrupt cheddar cheese & apple cider vinaigrette. Apple + abrupt cheddar = perfection.

To arrive sense of savour fifty-fifty amend as well as upwards the oculus candy factor amongst lots of vibrant colors, I added other seasonal ingredients similar savory roasted butternut squash, dried cranberries, as well as stovetop candied pecans.

The salad was a huge hit! Everyone loved it as well as several raved near the tender butternut squash, crunchy pecan & tangy/sweet apple tree cider vinaigrette combo. In fact, ane of my friends told me this recipe inspired her to brand & swallow to a greater extent than salads at abode amongst dissimilar variations. That makes me thence happy to hear!

I truly made it twice spell I was inward Colorado, thence I've included pictures hither from both versions. One used candied pecans & thinly sliced apple tree (my preferred version) as well as the other used regular toasted pecans & diced apple tree that I mixed into the vinaigrette.

Ingredients For The Autumn Salad

The best role near this salad is the contrasting mix of textures, flavors, as well as colors from the seasonal autumn ingredients. Each seize amongst teeth has a blend of soft, crunchy, sweet, tangy, tart, as well as bitter taste/textures that beautifully complement each other.

Here's a breakdown of the private components needed for the salad along amongst ideas for swaps if necessary:

• Leafy Baby Greens: This provides the slightly bitter chemical element as well as is the base of operations for the salad. I similar to utilization a mix of infant greens such equally spinach, kale & arugula (it's a flake peppery) but you lot tin utilization a unmarried light-green if you lot like. 


• Savory Roasted Butternut Squash: This is the tender, soft chemical element inward the salad. It adds a vibrant orangish color, a popular of natural sweetness, as well as a hint of fragrant rosemary, thyme & oregano. Not feeling butternut squash? Roasted acorn squash, delicata squash, or pumpkin would brand a proficient substitute.


• Candied Pecans: This is the crunchy, warm spiced & slightly sweetness element. Warning: they're addicting spell yet warm. Make sure to salvage about for the salad. ;) Fortunately, you lot tin ready a batch inward solely 10 minutes on the stovetop spell the butternut squelch is roasting. Don't wishing the extra sugar? Skip the candy chemical element (my recipe uses maple syrup & kokosnoot sugar) & only toast the pecans inward a skillet for a few minutes. 


• Sharp Cheddar Cheese: This provides about of the creamy, salubrious fats. Sharp cheddar pairs super good amongst fresh apple, but this salad would likewise live yummy amongst tangy caprine animal cheese, an herbed harvati, aged gouda, crumbled gorgonzola, or blueish cheese. NOTE: If you lot wishing to brand this salad dairy-free or vegan, only omit the cheese as well as you're proficient to go.

• Dried Cranberries: This adds a flake of sweetness, tartness, as well as chew to the salad + a lovely pink/red hue. Try to uncovering cranberries sweetened amongst apple tree juice if you lot tin to cut the saccharide content. I can't imagine using anything else here, but you lot tin likewise swap this amongst dried cherries or golden raisins. 


• Sliced Apple: This is the crunchy, juicy, semi-sweet chemical element of the salad. I prefer apples that are to a greater extent than on the tart side (I think Red Delicious are gross). My favorites are Honeycrisp, Braeburn, as well as Pink Lady. Another proficient choice if you're serving this to apple tree haters, is sliced pear or fifty-fifty jicama for a mild crunch. 


• Red Onion: This adds spiciness, crunch, as well as a royal hue to the salad. If you're serving this to onion haters you lot tin easily omit it or swap it for a milder onion similar light-green onion or chives instead.


• Apple Cider Vinaigrette: This is the vessel that brings the whole salad together. It's tangy, yet sweetness as well as the salubrious fatty (olive oil) inward it helps your torso absorb all the fat-soluble vitamins inward those leafy greens. It solely takes a few minutes to arrive from scratch thence you lot tin exercise it spell the squelch is roasting or the pecans are cooling. No apple tree cider vinegar on hand? Swap it amongst a maple balsamic vinaigrette, cranberry vinaigrette, or lemon/orange vinaigrette.

How to Make This Autumn Themed Salad + Prep-Ahead Tips

Most of you lot volition likely ready this leafy salad correct before the meal, thence I'm going to explicate the best means to brand everything (squash, pecans, dressing & salad) all inward ane go.

However, it likewise makes a wonderful appetizer, side dish, or principal course of instruction for autumn & wintertime holidays similar Thanksgiving as well as Christmas, thence I'm giving you lot about make-ahead tips for times when you're busy or wishing to brand salubrious meals ahead.

Fixing It All In One Go

1. Prep the butternut squelch & popular it inward the oven. While that's roasting (it takes near thirty minutes), you'll prepare the residual of the ingredients.

2. Next, make the candied pecans on the stovetop. They come upwards together inward a quick 10 minutes (your kitchen volition aroma heavenly), thence you'll spread the hot nuts (hehe) across a baking canvass lined amongst parchment newspaper to cool (this happens quickly).

3.  Meanwhile, make the homemade apple tree cider vinaigrette. Combine all ingredients inward a large drinking glass offend (these wide-mouth French drinking glass jars are pretty) or about sort of container amongst a lid (this solely takes a few minutes). Shake it similar crazy to emulsify the fossil oil as well as laid it aside to permit the flavors develop. I ever similar to brand my vinaigrettes amongst a lid thence I tin milk shiver it correct before serving since the vinegar & fossil oil split upwards thence easily (that's what happens when you lot don't guide hold stabilizers similar the store-bought ones).

4. Then, exercise the quick prep locomote for the salad. Grate the cheese, cutis & piece the onions, mensurate out the cranberries, as well as piece the apples (toss them amongst fresh lemon juice if you lot innovation on doing this to a greater extent than thence thirty minutes ahead).

5. By this time, the squelch is out of the oven as well as the candied pecans guide hold solidified (they may yet live a flake warm but that's okay), thence it's fourth dimension to assemble the salad following the directions below. Instead of scattering all the ingredients across the overstep of the salad, I prefer to grouping them together for a overnice presentation until it's mealtime.

6. Serving time! Right before you're ready to eat, toss all the ingredients together as well as serve immediately. Note: You tin either combine the dressing amongst the salad at nowadays or serve the vinaigrette on the side as well as permit folks add together equally much or equally niggling equally they wishing (my preference inward illustration at that spot are leftovers thence the greens don't larn soggy).

Just For Fun: My friend Laura's dog, Leko, who was patiently waiting for me to give him
about nutrient spell I shot the pics for this salad recipe. :) 

Make Ahead Tips

The Day Before The Meal: Roast the butternut squash, brand the apple tree cider vinaigrette, grate the cheese as well as piece the onions. Keep everything inward split upwards containers amongst a tight-fitting lid until you're ready to use. Right before serving, gently reheat the butternut squelch inward the oven or on the stove until warm (it's yet tasty mutual frigidness but I prefer it warm).

A Few Hours Before The Meal: Make the candied pecans as well as permit them solidify, My stovetop recipe makes glossy, caramel-like candied pecans which start to crystalize on solar daytime four or five thence their texture is best the outset 2 days. If desired, gather all components of the salad except for the squash, pecans, dressing, as well as apples as well as shop inward the refrigerator (in the same container you lot innovation on serving it in).

Right Before Serving: Slice the apples (we don't wishing them to become brown) as well as gather the salad. Toss the dressing amongst everything else or serve it on the side.

Meal Prep: If you're making this salad for normal meals & non a gathering, you lot tin layer all the ingredients (toss the apples inward about lemon juice thence they don't brownish equally quickly) except for the dressing inward large drinking glass jars as well as shop inward the refrigerator until you're ready to use. This should proceed 4-5 days (keep inward heed that the candied nuts volition start to crystallize yesteryear thence but they volition yet sense of savour the same).

More Fall Recipes To Pair With This Autumn Salad:

• Apple Cider Sangria
• Fall & Winter White Wine Sangria
• Rosemary Spiced Nuts
• Roasted Butternut Squash Soup amongst Coconut Milk
• Stuffed Acorn Squash amongst Beef, Apple & Rice
• Gorgonzola Pear English linguistic communication Muffin Pizzas
• Pumpkin Apple Harvest Muffins
• Cabbage Roll Soup

autumn salad, autumn salad, salad amongst butternut squash, salad amongst apples, salad amongst candied pecans, salad amongst cranberries

side dish

American

Yield: 6-8Author: Elaina Newton -

Autumn Salad amongst Butternut Squash, Apples, Cranberries & Candied Pecans

prep time: xx minscook time: thirty minstotal time: 50 mins

Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 salubrious & gorgeous autumn salad featuring vibrant seasonal ingredients similar roasted butternut squash, dried cranberries, crisp apple, leafy greens, as well as quick candied pecans all tossed inward a tangy apple tree cider vinaigrette. Bring this salad to all your autumn gatherings to wow your friends & family! (gluten-free, grain-free & vegetarian)

ingredients:

• 8 -10 oz of organic infant greens (like spinach, arugula, kale, chard, etc.) 
• 1 1/2 cups of savory roasted butternut squash
• 1 loving cup of stovetop candied pecans OR toasted pecans 
• 1/2 a small-scale crimson onion 
• 1/2 loving cup of dried cranberries
• 3/4 loving cup of grated abrupt cheddar cheese
• 1 small-scale organic semi-sweet apple tree (like Honeycrisp, Pink Lady or Braeburn)

For serving:

• homemade apple tree cider vinaigrette dressing
• Cracked dark pepper & sea salt, to taste
• Ceylon cinnamon (sprinkled on the apple tree slices)  

instructions:

1. Prep the savory roasted butternut squash as well as popular it inward the oven. It'll guide hold near fifteen minutes to prep & thirty minutes to bake, which gives you lot enough of fourth dimension to ready the residual of the ingredients for the salad. 
2. While the squelch is roasting, ready the stovetop candied pecans. This takes near 10 minutes, thence you lot tin spread them on about parchment newspaper to cool spell you lot exercise brand the residual of the salad. 
3. Combine all the ingredients for the homemade apple tree cider vinaigrette inward a glass offend amongst a lid as well as milk shiver good to emulsify the olive oil. Set this aside to permit the flavors develop.
4. If you're using block cheese, grate it now, thence cutis & thinly piece the crimson onion, mensurate out the cranberries, as well as thinly piece the cored apple. 
5. By at nowadays the squelch should live done as well as the candied pecans solidified. Assemble the salad yesteryear pouring the infant greens into a large serving bowl, thence identify each ingredient (onion, cheese, squash, nuts, apple tree slices, cranberries) on overstep of the greens inward its ain pile (see overstep pic for reference). If desired, you lot tin fan out the apple tree slices to brand them expect pretty. 
6. Right before eating, toss the salad to mix upwards all the ingredients as well as serve amongst the vinaigrette on the side (shake it upwards again) thence folks tin command the amount of dressing. Alternately, you lot tin mix the vinaigrette into the salad but live warned that it volition brand whatever leftovers soggy & wilt the salad quicker.  Optional: sprinkle whatever apple tree slices amongst Ceylon cinnamon as well as garnish the salads amongst cracked dark pepper. 

NOTES:

If you lot wishing to brand the homemade components for this salad all inward ane become before assembling everything for the finally dish (roasted squash, candied pecans, salad dressing) it'll guide hold 50ish minutes from start to complete to brand the ingredients as well as thence create the salad. You tin sure prep several of the ingredients ahead of fourth dimension (earlier inward the solar daytime or the solar daytime beforehand). Check the postal service inward a higher identify for to a greater extent than detailed tips!  If you lot innovation on serving this equally a principal course of instruction as well as wishing to a greater extent than protein, overstep the salad amongst hard-boiled eggs, roasted chicken, cast atomic discover 26 skillet steak, parmesan chicken, or pan-seared salmon.

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