What's For Dinner Wednesday: Roasted Butternut Squash Salad with Maple Dijon Dressing

This recipe is brought you by the glorious foods of the fall season. Bring on the squash!

 Butternut squash is one of my favorite fall foods. It's a little bit savory and a little bit sweet and pairs well with so many different flavors. It's also the perfect ingredient to add hearty richness to a meatless dish. This salad is a perfect example.

This fall salad would make a filling lunch or a delicious meatless dinner. Typically I prefer my squash prepared on the more savory side, so in this recipe it is simply roasted with olive oil, salt, and pepper and is complimented by a few touches of sweetness from other ingredients in this salad. Dried cherries add a sweet and tart flavor to this salad and it gets a bit of spiciness from the red onions. Toasted pecans add crunch and their nutty flavor pairs really nicely with the squash. It's all topped off with a sweet and spicy maple Dijon dressing. The combination of butternut squash and maple syrup is a classic fall flavor and this dressing really just rounds out the whole salad nicely.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups mixed greens *I love this Fresh Express Baby Kale Mix with Chard & Spinach
• 3/4 cup roasted butternut squash** 
• 1 Tbs. red onion, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup dried tart cherries
• 2 Tbs. toasted pecans

For the Maple Dijon Dressing:

• 1 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp. pure maple syrup
• 1/2 Tbs. Dijon mustard
• 1 Tbs. white wine vinegar
• 1 tsp. fresh parsley, chopped
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Arrange greens in a bowl and top with squash, onion, cherries, and pecans.

Separately in a small bowl or carafe, whisk together olive oil and next 5 ingredients (through salt and pepper). Dress salad with desired amount of dressing.


**How to roast butternut squash:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Cut the top and bottom off a medium butternut squash and use a sharp knife to carefully peel off the skin. Cut the squash in half lengthwise and use a spoon to scoop out the seeds inside. Discard seeds and membranes.

Cut the squash into 1-inch chunks. In a large bowl, combine diced squash with 2 Tbs. olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Toss until well coated and then spread out on a large baking sheet.

Roast for 25-30 minutes until squash begins to caramelize and is fork tender.