Delicata squash salad is a perfect fall or winter side dish! This one features caramelized roasted squash, pomegranate seeds, and a tangy vinaigrette.
Looking for a stunning fall salad or winter side dish? Enter: delicata squash salad! This is no ordinary green side salad. This is something special, a hearty and healthy salad perfect for entertaining. Then again, you could easily whip it up to make a filling meal out of a weeknight soup. It stars Alex and my very favorite squash: the delicata, which is brilliantly sweet and has edible skin (no peeling necessary!). Roast up that squash in just 20 minutes, and in the meantime prep those refreshing pomegranate seeds, crunchy pistachios, and tangy honey mustard dressing. Yep, it’s a stunner. Ready to get cooking?
Tips on making delicata squash salad
This delicata squash salad is all about contrasts, from the caramelized squash to the crisp baby greens, the pop of the pomegranate and the creamy goat cheese dollops. It’s perfect for an occasion like Thanksgiving or Christmas. But now that we have this in our arsenal, Alex and I love the idea of using it in a simpler weeknight dinner too. Here are a few notes on making this healthy salad, and how to speed up prep:
- Squash takes about 30 minutes total to roast (see below). This is the longest lead time item of the salad, so make sure to get this going right away! Or to make it ahead, you can roast the squash ahead of time. Just store it refrigerated and reheat in a 400 degree oven until it’s warm (5 to 10 minutes).
- Buy pomegranate seeds to speed up prep. Usually we buy a pomegranate, but this time Alex and I were able to find pomegranate seeds at the grocery and it was super speedy.
- Homemade dressing is a must. Whatever you do, don’t skimp on the homemade dressing! This one uses our easy Honey Mustard Dressing, which is simple to memorize. Another great option is this Best Balsamic Dressing.