Oh, I know your Thanksgiving menu is probably planned and I think that is great! I actually had no intention of trying to convince you today, this late in the game, that you absolutely must include such and such recipe on your holiday table. I know you’re committed and that’s that. But for the rest of you slackers, it’s your lucky day! This is your Thanksgiving salad. Period. I have taught it umpteen times already this month, with another class to go and I am more obsessed with it than ever. I think this salad actually makes turkey taste better!! Make some room on that menu!
Delicata squash should be nicknamed “THE Thanksgiving squash” because it’s seasonal, adorable, and minimal work. You don’t peel it! You eat the skin! It tastes amazing! How much do you love me right now? Forget butternut squash this year. Give yourself a break and go with delicata. I have no idea if you can find it where you live, but in Southern California it’s all over the place at every supermarket, farmers market and Trader Joe’s. Sometimes it’s off-white with yellow stripes, sometimes pale yellow with orange and lots of in-betweens.
As much as I love delicata squash, my favorite part of this salad just might be the big wedges of roasted apples. Pink Ladies are my favorite and I think are perfect here, but Honeycrisp, Fuji, Jonagold are all great, too. Granny Smith is a little too tart in my opinion. Leave the peel on to not only make your life easier, but I think the apples look prettier that way and hold their shape better.
Here’s your game plan for this salad:
- make the dressing this weekend and store in a glass jar with a lid in the refrigerator
- wash and dry your salad greens on Tuesday and store in the refrigerator
- if you are using nuts or pumpkin seeds, toast them Tuesday and store at room temperature
- wash, seed and cut delicata squash into slices on Wednesday and store in a container or ziploc in the refrigerator
- shave Manchego cheese with a vegetable peeler and store in the refrigerator in a tightly sealed container
- Thursday morning you can roast the delicate squash and apples and take the dressing out of the refrigerator to bring to room temp; store cooked squash and apples at room temp until dinnertime
- right before carving the turkey, assemble and dress the salad!
Have an amazing Thanksgiving!!!
Roasted Delicata Squash and Apple Salad
Ingredients
- 2 delicata squash, washed but not peeled, cut in half lengthwise, seeds removed, and cut into ½-inch slices
- 2 large apples, cored, sliced into ½-inch slices (I cut them crosswise)
- 3 Tablespoons olive oil or unrefined coconut oil, melted
- 1 Tablespoon pure maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary, optional, but I think it’s delicious
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 10 cups mixed greens including some bitter varieties such as radicchio and/or arugula
- Dressing:
- 2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar, preferably raw
- 5 Tablespoons unrefined, cold-pressed extra-virgin olive oil
- ¾ teaspoon Dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 teaspoons pure maple syrup
- Toppings: shaved manchego cheese, ½ cup buttered and salted toasted pecans or toasted, salted pumpkin seeds
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Place the squash and apples in a large bowl and add the melted coconut oil and 1 Tablespoon maple syrup. Toss to coat. (You can also add the apples to the salad raw instead of roasted.)
- Place the apples and squash in one layer on the baking sheets and sprinkle with rosemary, salt and pepper. Roast until tender, approximately 20-30 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
- For the dressing: in a small bowl or screw top jar combine apple cider vinegar, olive oil, Dijon, salt, pepper and maple syrup and whisk or shake to combine. You may have more dressing than you need for this recipe.
- Place salad greens on a platter and toss with enough dressing to coat lightly. Separately drizzle the squash and apples with some dressing and add to the greens. Sprinkle with any desired toppings. Taste for salt and pepper and serve.
Like this recipe? Rate & comment below!
Could I use olive oil to roast the squash and apples.? I’m not a big fan of the coconut flavor that comes through. Otherwise I love this salad.
Absolutely! I am going to change the recipe since I now use olive oil more than coconut oil in this recipe.
This has become a classic side at our Christmas and Thanksgiving meals! It’s beautiful and delicious!
I am so honored to be at your holiday table!
I love this salad. I’m making it this morning for a fall outdoor brunch today. Just one question…is it 1 or 3 T. of melted coconut oil to add to the squash and apples? Thank you!
It will be a hit! The recipe calls for 3 T of melted coconut oil and 1 Tablespoon of maple syrup to be tossed with the squash and apples. Enjoy!
Hi Pamela,
This delicata squash recipe looks amazing and I would love to add a protein like quinoa for my vegetarian daughter for Rosh Hashanah dinner. What do you think? OR do you think a different grain with protein would be better? Nuts? Thanks and wishing you and your family a Happy and Healthy New Year…
I think quinoa would be fabulous here! I also think farro would be great. Happy new year to you as well 🙂
Is this salad still worth it without the cheese? any vegan substitutions?
Thanks!
Absolutely! The cheese is totally optional and not my favorite part of the salad. No need to sub anything in its place unless you have a clean vegan cheese you like. It’s one of my favorite Thanksgiving salads!
I made this salad for a dinner party and Thanksgiving and it was devoured. Several of friends have made it based on my recommendation with positive results. I added pomegranate seeds for extra twist.
That’s so nice of you to share the recipe, thank you! It’s really one of my favorites for the fall. 🙂
What can I do of this ahead of time? I am trying to think through my Thanksgiving timetable because everyone is coming from out of town so everything has to be made in my kitchen!
thank you
The do-ahead tips are written in the paragraph right above the last photo. 🙂
ha, thanks…sorry I didn’t see that, I was just so excited about making it I jumped right to the recipe 😉
THANK YOU!!