Perfectly roasted butternut squash with caramelized edges tossed with mixed greens, arugula, salty feta, sweet cranberries, candied pecans, crunchy apple and an easy vinaigrette. This salad is absolutely delicious and a must try!
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Why You'll love this recipe
- This salad is perfect for fall and winter during squash season. Not only is it packed with flavor, it's also nourishing and nutrient-packed. Butternut squash is rich in vitamins A and C. Mixed greens, arugula, feta, cranberries, apple, pecans and perfectly roasted squash tossed in a tangy vinaigrette.
- It's beautiful and vibrant. Colorful and appealing. This butternut squash feta salad is sweet and savory, full of different textures making it very satisfying.
- You can easily customize it by switching the nuts for a different kind, use kale or romaine, add quinoa... This dish is great to put together for entertaining, from a dinner party to a holiday celebration like my apple brie salad, arugula burrata pear salad, or my kale beet salad.
Key Ingredients and variations
- Butternut squash: I use a medium butternut squash that I peel and cut myself, but feel free to save time and energy and buy a fresh pre-cut squash to roast if you prefer. These packs are a little more expensive but it can be totally worth it! Seasoned with a blend of common spices and roasted to perfection.
- Mixed greens and arugula: I like the addition of the peppery arugula to this salad. You can use kale or romaine lettuce instead of mixed baby greens or any lettuce you love.
- Feta: salty delicious feta goes really well in this salad. If you don't like feta, you can absolutely replace it with goat cheese, or even crumbled blue cheese.
- Dried cranberries: they add sweetness and texture. They're delicious in this salad.
- Apple: the crunch, the sweet and juicy tart honeycrisps are my 1st choice, but gala, fuji, or any apple you love the most would work too.
- Candied pecans: can be replaced with walnuts, or honey roasted almonds or pepitas.
- Vinaigrette: my signature shallot vinaigrette with oil, vinegar, lemon, shallots and Dijon.
How to cube a butternut squash
- There's different technics to cube up a butternut squash. After trying many, I find this method the easiest and safest way.
Start by peeling it with a vegetable peeler. This might take a little arm effort.
Cut off both ends of the squash, and discard.
Scrape all the seeds off from the bottom.
With a sharp knife, slice the butternut squash into ½ to ¾-inch thick slices, then cut them into bite size.
How to make this butternut squash feta salad
- Preheat oven to 425° Fahrenheit.
Add cubed squash to baking sheet with oil and spices: paprika, garlic and onion powder, salt and pepper and mix everything until well coated. Place in oven on middle rack and roast for 25-30 min, flipping halfway.
While squash is roasting, whisk vinaigrette together.
Put salad together by layering mixed greens and arugula, feta, cranberries, apple, pecans and roasted butternut squash. Season with salt and pepper, drizzle vinaigrette, stir and serve. Enjoy!
More Recipes with Squash
If you love squash check these out!
Tips
- You can season the squash with different spices to your taste before roasting it.
- Don't overcook the butternut squash. It should be tender but not mushy. I roast it at high temperature to get those delicious caramelized edges. Check for doneness carefully at about 22 minutes with a fork.
- You can serve the roasted squash warm on top of the salad, or let it cool. It's delicious either way.
- Don't add the vinaigrette to the salad until right before serving so the lettuce doesn't get soggy.
- I recently realize that I love using a serrated vegetable peeler because it gives a little grip to the veggies, making it safer and easier to peel.
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frequently asked questions
Technically yes, but fresh butternut squash will have a better texture when roasted. I highly recommend going with fresh for this recipe. To make is easier, you can find pre-cut butternut squash at many grocery stores when it's in season (September/October to February/March)
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Roasted Butternut Squash Feta Salad
Equipment
- spoon
- bowl
Ingredients
For the roasted butternut squash
- 1 butternut squash medium, cubed, about 3-4 cups
- 1 tablespoon olive oil or neutral oil of choice
- ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
For the salad
- 6-7 cups mixed greens
- 2-3 cups arugula
- 4 ounces crumbled feta or more to taste
- ⅓ cup dried cranberries
- 1 apple chopped; honeycrisp, gala or of choice
- ½ cup candied pecans
For the vinaigrette
- ¼ cup avocado oil or light tasting olive oil
- 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar or champagne vinegar or red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice fresh
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped shallot about 1 small shallot
- 1 pinch salt and pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425° Fahrenheit. Prepare the butternut squash. Start by peeling it.
- Cut the 2 ends off, and scrape the seeds out with a spoon.
- Cut the butternut squash into ½ to ¾-inch thick disks then into cubes.
- Add the cubed squash to a baking sheet with oil and the spices: paprika, garlic and onion powder, salt and pepper and mix everything until well coated. Place in the oven on the middle rack and roast for 25-30 minutes, flipping halfway with a spatula.
- While the squash is roasting, whisk the vinaigrette together.
- Put the salad together by layering mixed greens and arugula, feta, cranberries, apple, pecans and the roasted butternut squash. Season with salt and pepper, drizzle the vinaigrette, stir and serve. Enjoy!
Notes
- Roasting time will vary per oven model and size of the cubes. Check for doneness at about 20 minutes with the tines of a fork.
Nutrition
About Priscilla Lawrence
Hi there, I'm Priscilla Lawrence! Welcome to Sprinkled With Balance where I share elevated and approachable nutrient-rich recipes that aren't overly restrictive, complicated or boring! Based in California but born and raised in France, I'm a mom of two, former certified nutritionist, recipe developer, and food photographer.
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