Vegan Butternut Squash and Cashew Salad
This Vegan Butternut Squash and Cashew Salad is super simple to make, yet hearty and delicious. The date vinaigrette brings the perfect balance of sweet and savory to the dish making it a new favorite!
Servings: 2 people
Equipment
- High speed blender
Ingredients
FOR THE SQUASH:
- 2 cups butternut squash peeled and cubed
- 1 tbsp coconut oil melted
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
FOR THE CINNAMON DATE VINAIGRETTE:
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 1/3 cup water
- 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 2 tsp dijon mustard
- 2-3 deglet dates
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
FOR THE SALAD:
- 4 cups baby spinach or kale
- 1 small apple cored and thinly sliced
- 1 large carrot shaved or diced
- 1/2-1 medium avocado sliced
- 1/4 cup roasted unsalted cashews
- 1/4 cup dried cranberries
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Spread cubed butternut squash out on large baking sheet. Drizzle with coconut oil, sprinkle with smoked paprika, cinnamon, salt and pepper - toss to coat. Bake 12-15 minutes, stirring half way through, or until cooked through and tender.
- While squash cooks, add all ingredients for dressing to ninja smoothie maker or high power blender and puree until smooth with no traces of the dates - approximate 20-30 seconds.
- Once butternut squash has roasted and cooled, assemble salad by dividing spinach/kale between two large bowls, top with sliced apples, shaved carrots, avocado, cashews and dried cranberries.
- Drizzle with date vinaigrette and enjoy!
Notes
The Cinnamon Date vinaigrette makes about 1 cup, store leftovers in refrigerator for up to 5 days.