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Cooking adventures in a small, closet sized, kitchen. - I came to realize that my meals were boring and that I had been eating the same few dishes over and over again for years. It was time for a change! I now spend my free time searching for, creating and trying tasty new recipes in my closet sized kitchen.

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Roast Acorn Squash, Sweet Potato and Beet Kale and Quinoa Salad with Avocado, Feta and Pomegranate in a Cilantro Lemon Tahini Dressing

[heart_this] · Jan 10, 2018 · 3 Comments

Roast Acorn Squash, Sweet Potato and Beet Kale and Quinoa Salad with Avocado, Feta and Pomegranate in a Cilantro Lemon Tahini Dressing

A roasted acorn squash, sweet potato and beet kale and quinoa salad with avocado, feta and pomegranate in a cilantro lemon tahini dressing!

It’s time for salad! A hearty and tasty salad that eats like a meal, is fully satisfying and healthy, leaving you with no regrets, a roast acorn squash, sweet potato and beet kale and quinoa salad with avocado, feta and pomegranate in a cilantro lemon tahini dressing! This salad takes a bit of effort but it’s all relatively easy and well worth it! It starts out by roasting some winter veggies including acorn squash, sweet potatoes and (optionally) beets and carrots until they are nice and tender and good. Next up are some light and tasty toasted chickpea
croutons. The base of the salad is kale and quinoa and it’s finished off with avocado, red onion, pomegranate, pepitas and feta! If all of this were not enough the dressing is one that I have been obsessed with lately, a simple combination of tahini, lemon, salt and sweetener and for this salad I added cilantro before pureeing into the dressing! This roast acorn squash, sweet potato and beet kale and quinoa salad with avocado, feta and pomegranate in a cilantro lemon tahini dressing has to be the perfect winter salad!
When I first had a kale salad I did not appreciate it! The kale was really raw, stiff and it had a not too pleasant texture that I most certainly did not enjoy chewing… After that I had a kale salad where I really enjoyed the kale and the secret to getting nice and tender kale in a salad is massaging it! Yes, that’s right, you are going to massage your kale! LOL! You slice the kale thinly (optionally removing the ribs, though I just leave them in) add a touch of lemon juice, oil and salt and massage the kale. The kale starts out as rather stiff, having a pale, almost waxy green colour, and after a few minutes of massaging the kale with your hands it gets all nice, soft, tender all sorts of good! The colour will also change to a gorgeous dark green as you massage it and the result is a kale that is just magical for salads!

Roast Acorn Squash, Sweet Potato and Beet Kale and Quinoa Salad with Avocado, Feta and Pomegranate in a Cilantro Lemon Tahini Dressing
Roast Acorn Squash, Sweet Potato and Beet Kale and Quinoa Salad with Avocado, Feta and Pomegranate in a Cilantro Lemon Tahini Dressing
Roast Acorn Squash, Sweet Potato and Beet Kale and Quinoa Salad with Avocado, Feta and Pomegranate in a Cilantro Lemon Tahini Dressing
The
trick to a good kale salad is to
massage the kale which helps to make it nice and tender!

Roast Acorn Squash, Sweet Potato and Beet Kale and Quinoa Salad with Avocado, Feta and Pomegranate in a Cilantro Lemon Tahini Dressing
Roast Acorn Squash, Sweet Potato and Beet Kale and Quinoa Salad with Avocado, Feta and Pomegranate in a Cilantro Lemon Tahini Dressing

Roast Acorn Squash, Sweet Potato and Beet Kale and Quinoa Salad with Avocado, Feta and Pomegranate in a Cilantro Lemon Tahini Dressing
Roast Acorn Squash, Sweet Potato and Beet Kale and Quinoa Salad with Avocado, Feta and Pomegranate in a Cilantro Lemon Tahini Dressing

Roast Acorn Squash, Sweet Potato and Beet Kale and Quinoa Salad with Avocado, Feta and Pomegranate in a Cilantro Lemon Tahini Dressing

Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 30 minutes Total Time: 45 minutes Servings: 6

A roasted acorn squash, sweet potato and beet kale and quinoa salad with avocado, feta and pomegranate in a cilantro lemon tahini dressing!

ingredients
    For the roast winter veggies:
  • 1 acorn squash, seeded and cut into 1/4 inch slices
  • 1 sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1/4 inch slices
  • 2 beets, peeled and cut into 1/4 inch slices
  • 1 tablespoon oil
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • For the roast chickpeas:
  • 1 (15 ounce) can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
  • 1 tablespoon oil
  • 1 teaspoon cumin, toasted an ground
  • 1 teaspoon paprika (I like hot smoked)
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • For the cilantro lemon tahini dressing:
  • 1/4 cup tahini
  • 3 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 1/4 cup cilantro
  • 2 tablespoons yogurt
  • 2 teaspoons maple syrup
  • 1 clove garlic, grated
  • water
  • salt to taste
  • For the salad:
  • 1/2 cup quinoa
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 bunch kale, thinly sliced
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon oil
  • 1 pinch salt
  • 1 avocado, sliced
  • 1/2 cup small red onion, sliced
  • 1/2 cup pomegranate
  • 1/4 cup pepitas
  • 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
  • 1/4 cup feta cheese, crumbled
directions
    For the roast winter veggies:
  1. Toss the veggies in the oil, salt and pepper, place in a single layer on a baking sheet and roast in a preheated 425F/220C oven until tender, about 20-25 minutes, flipping over half way through.
  2. For the roast chickpeas:
  3. Toss the chickpeas in the oil, cumin, paprika, salt and pepper and toast in a heavy bottom skillet over medium-high heat until crispy, about 15-20 minutes, mixing a few times.
  4. For the cilantro lemon tahini dressing:
  5. Puree everything in a food processor adding enough water to get the dressing to the desired consistency before seasoning with salt to taste.
  6. For the salad:
  7. Meanwhile, bring the water and quinoa to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the quinoa is tender and has absorbed the water, about 15-20 minutes, remove from heat and let sit for 5 minutes, covered.
  8. Massage the mixture of the lemon juice, oil and salt into the kale until the kale turns a darker green and gets all nice and soft and tender, about 1-2 minutes.
  9. Toss everything and enjoy!
Option: Replace the feta with goat cheese.
Nutrition Facts: Calories 470, Fat 0 (Saturated 0, Trans 0), Cholesterol 0, Sodium 0, Carbs 0 (Fiber 0, Sugars 0), Protein 0

Nutrition by: Nutritional facts powered by Edamam
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Avocado, Food, Gluten-free, Main Course, Quinoa, Recipe, Salad, Vegetable, Vegetarian

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Anonymous says

    May 14, 2018 at 5:19 pm

    Hello there! I could have sworn I've visited thiks blog before buut after going through many of the posts I realijzed it's new to me.
    Regardless, I'm certainly pleased I found it aand I'll be bookmarking it and checking back often!

    Reply
  2. Arvilla says

    November 4, 2020 at 1:42 am

    It really isn’t necessary to list all the ingredients in the recipe title. Seriously.

    Reply
  3. Nancy says

    November 8, 2021 at 8:17 pm

    Hi Kevin, I made this exactly as written. Absolutely delicious. We loved all of the different flavors and textures …and already plan to make it again soon. Thank you very much!

    Reply

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Kevin: I came to realize that my meals were boring and that I had been eating the same few dishes over and over again for years. It was time for a change! I now spend my free time searching for, creating and trying tasty new recipes in my closet sized kitchen.
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