Warm Quinoa Salad with Roasted Vegetables
A Warm Quinoa Salad with roasted sweet potato, Brussels sprouts, and kale is the perfect cozy vegetarian dish for fall or winter. It's tossed with the most delicious honey mustard vinaigrette and served with crunchy pecans and pomegranate for extra flavor and texture. It can be served as an entree or side dish, and it makes a festive salad option for the holidays.
As a dietitian and intuitive eater, I tend to gravitate more toward warm and cozy soups and away from cool, crisp salads when it's cold out. But this Roasted Vegetable Quinoa Salad is a hearty and filling salad that I actually crave during the fall and winter seasons. It's warm, cozy, and comforting on a cold day. (For more like this, check out my collection of favorite hearty fall salads here.)
If you're making this for the holidays, try pairing it with Vegetable Pot Pie, Maple Baked Tempeh, or Mashed Potatoes with Creamy Vegan Mushroom Gravy. For a party-worthy appetizer, add these Baked Brie Puff Pastry Bites with Jam. And if you're looking for more festive recipes, check out my complete collections of vegetarian Thanksgiving recipes and crowd-pleasing Thanksgiving entrees.
As a delicious weekday meal, serve this warm salad with Tuscan White Bean Soup, Vegetarian Irish Stew with Lentils and Mushrooms, or 20-Minute Green Pasta with Spinach Sauce. Either way, it's sure to become one of your favorite salad recipes!
Ingredients
The key to a satisfying winter salad is a good mix of warm roasted vegetables, hearty greens, a starchy carb like quinoa, and full-flavored dressing.
One of my favorite salad dressings to pair with seasonal fall/winter veggies is this honey mustard vinaigrette with apple cider vinegar and thyme. It's so delicious with roasted Brussels sprouts, especially.
Crunchy pecans and tart pomegranate add an extra punch of texture, color, and flavor to this dish.
Instructions
Toss sweet potato and Brussels sprouts with grapeseed oil and seasoning. Roast in a 450ºF oven for 30 minutes, or until browned and tender.
In the meantime, cook the quinoa. While the quinoa cooks, add kale and extra virgin olive oil to a large mixing bowl and use your hands to massage until tender.
In a separate small bowl or jar, mix together the dressing ingredients.
Combine the massaged kale, roasted vegetables, cooked quinoa, pecans, pomegranate, and dressing.
Hint: Massaging the kale with extra virgin olive oil infuses the greens with the oil's flavor and breaks down the hard, fibrous parts of the kale. Grab and squeeze the kale with your hands for a couple of minutes or until the greens are tender.
Substitutions
Need to make an ingredient swap? Here are a few substitutions that work well for this recipe.
- Kale - instead of kale, you can use spinach. (Skip the massaging with oil step.)
- Pecans - use another chopped nut, such as walnuts or pistachios. For a nut-free version, use pumpkin seeds.
- Vegan - replace the honey in the dressing with maple syrup.
Variations
You can easily change up this recipe to make it your own. Here are a few ideas.
- Chickpea - add cooked chickpeas for extra protein and texture. Great for making the salad a more complete and filling meal.
- Summer - to make this recipe more seasonal during summer months, roast zucchini and summer squash instead of sweet potato and Brussels sprouts (reduce oven temperature to 400 degrees Fahrenheit) and use fresh berries instead of pomegranate.
- Wild Rice - use wild rice instead of quinoa. Cook the wild rice according to package instructions.
See this Chickpea Sheet Pan Dinner with similar flavors from Maple Mustard Vinaigrette.
Storage
This salad is best enjoyed immediately, when the roasted vegetables are fresh out of the oven and the quinoa is still warm. The heat lightly cooks and warms up the other salad ingredients.
If you have leftovers, store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to five days. Reheat in the microwave or serve at room temperature.
This recipe doesn't stand up well to freezing.
Top tip
Don't overcrowd the baking sheet with vegetables when roasting! Spread them out as much as possible so they aren't touching each other. This gives the vegetables space to caramelize and crisp instead of being steamed.
FAQ
You can certainly eat roasted vegetables cold or at room temperature. You may find roasted vegetables to be more satisfying when served warm, especially during the colder fall and winter seasons.
For the best roasted vegetables, make sure you're using enough oil and don't crowd the pan. The vegetables should be spread out in a single layer. The oven temperature is also important. Set the oven between 400 and 450 degrees Fahrenheit for crisp and caramelized roasted veggies.
📖 Recipe
Warm Quinoa Salad with Roasted Vegetables
Equipment
- Knife and cutting board
- Baking sheet
- Mixing bowls
Ingredients
For the salad:
- 1 medium sweet potato , cut into 1-inch cubes
- 1 pound Brussels sprouts , trimmed and halved (2 ¾ cups)
- 2 tablespoons grapeseed oil
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup dry quinoa
- 4 cups chopped kale
- 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil (optional)
- ½ cup chopped pecans
- ½ cup pomegranate seeds
For the dressing:
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons mustard
- 1 tablespoon honey (see note 1)
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
- 2 cloves garlic , minced
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
Prepare the salad:
- Preheat the oven to 450 degrees fahrenheit.
- Transfer the sweet potatoes and Brussels sprouts to a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with grapeseed oil and sprinkle garlic powder and salt. Use your hands to mix the vegetables until they are evenly coated with oil and seasoning. Arrange the brussels sprouts so they are cut-side down on the baking sheet. Transfer the baking sheet to the oven and roast for 30 minutes, or until vegetables are tender and browned.
- In the meantime, bring quinoa and 1 cup of water to a boil. Once boiling, cover and reduce the heat to low. Cook covered for 15 minutes, or until the quinoa is tender and the liquid is absorbed. Turn off the heat and fluff quinoa with a fork.
- While the quinoa is cooking, add the kale and extra virgin olive oil (if using) to a large mixing bowl and massage with your hands for 2 minutes, or until kale is tender.
Prepare the dressing:
- In a separate small bowl, whisk extra virgin olive oil, cider vinegar, mustard, honey, thyme, garlic, and salt. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
Assemble the salad:
- Add the roasted vegetables, cooked quinoa, pecans, pomegranate, and dressing to the bowl of kale and toss until combined. Enjoy!
Notes
- Honey/Vegan Option: Use regular honey or substitute hot honey for extra spicy flavor. Use maple syrup instead of honey to make this recipe vegan.
- Storage: Serve immediately for the best results. If there are leftovers, store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to five days. Reheat in the microwave or serve at room temperature. Do not freeze.
- Nutrition facts are estimates only and based on a side dish serving of ⅛ of the full recipe.
