This butternut squash salad is a must-try fall recipe! It's filled with spiced squash, pomegranates, goat cheese & a delicious cumin-date dressing.

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roasted butternut squash salad

Do you do Friendsgiving or Thanksgiving? Or both? We’re celebrating both this year, so I created this crowd-pleasing butternut squash salad recipe because I know both friends AND family members will love it. It’s the kind of salad that will convert anyone to being a salad lover, because it’s filled with spiced roasted butternut squash, pomegranates, goat cheese, and pistachios. It’s a roasty, spicy, creamy, tangy combo that Jack and I are pretty obsessed with.

Butternut Squash Salad Recipe Ingredients

This salad packs a huge punch of flavor, thanks to 6 essential components:

  • Spiced roasted butternut squash. I toss the soft, creamy cubes of squash with cumin, coriander, cinnamon, and cayenne to give them a warm, sweet & spicy flavor.
  • Pomegranate seeds. They add a fun pop of pink and juicy, bursty bites.
  • Pistachios. I love adding a nutty, crunchy element to any salad recipe, and pistachios are excellent here.
  • Chopped Medjool dates. The sweet dates pair perfectly with the warmly spiced squash.
  • Goat cheese. The creamy, tangy goat cheese cuts the sweetness of the squash and dates. If you’d prefer to make this salad vegan, substitute diced avocado.
  • Cumin-spiced cider-date dressing. This tangy, punchy dressing ties the whole salad together! I make it by blending apple cider vinegar with 1 Medjool date, cumin, olive oil, lemon juice, and a big pinch of cumin. It really highlights the sweet, spiced fall flavors here.

    • This butternut squash salad recipe is super easy to pull off. Roast the squash, spice it, blend the dressing, and put it all together. A tip for roasting the squash: I like to add the spice mix AFTER the squash comes out of the oven while it’s still warm so the spices don’t burn.

    If you love this butternut squash salad recipe…

    Try my beet salad, Brussels sprout salad, kale salad, or fall farro salad next!

    Butternut Squash Salad

    rate this recipe:5 from 49 votesPrep Time: 20 minutes Cook Time: 30 minutes Total Time: 50 minutes Serves 4 as a sideSave Recipe Print RecipeThis delicious butternut squash salad is filled with pomegranates, goat cheese, greens, and a spiced cumin-date dressing. It's hearty enough to be a meal on its own, but it'd also be a wonderful holiday side dish.

    Ingredients

    • 1 small butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cubed
    • ½ to 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
    • Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
    • ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
    • ¼ teaspoon ground coriander
    • ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
    • ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper, less if sensitive to spice
    • 6 cups loose-packed spring mix greens
    • 2 ounces goat cheese, torn into smaller pieces
    • 2 Medjool dates, pitted and diced
    • ¼ cup pomegranate seeds
    • ¼ cup pistachios, toasted and crushed

    Cider Date Dressing (makes extra)

    Instructions

    • Preheat the oven to 425°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Place the butternut squash cubes on the sheet. Drizzle with the olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to coat and spread evenly on the baking sheet. Roast for 30 to 35 minutes, or until tender and browned around the edges.
    • In a small bowl, stir together the cumin, coriander, cinnamon, and cayenne. Set aside.
    • Make the Cider Date Dressing: In a blender, combine the olive oil, vinegar, lemon juice, date, garlic, cumin, and 3 tablespoons of the water. Add 1 to 2 more tablespoons of water as needed to blend. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
    • Remove the butternut squash from the oven, let cool slightly, and, while warm, toss with the spice mixture.
    • Assemble the salad with the spring mix greens and half of the roasted squash. Drizzle with ⅓ of the dressing, toss lightly, then add the remaining squash, goat cheese, dates, pomegranates, and pistachios. Drizzle with more dressing as desired. Serve immediately.

    Special thanks to ALDI for partnering on this post.

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