Full of delicious and healthy ingredients this Roasted Squash, Quinoa, Avocado and Feta Salad is perfect for a light lunch or dinner and can be prepped ahead of time for an easy work lunch. It’s suitable for vegetarians and is gluten-free too!
Ever since the indulgences of Easter I have been craving healthy food, which has been quite strongly reflected in my blog. So far since Easter I have shared my Spinach, Cauliflower, Quinoa and Chickpea Curry, my Sticky Harissa Chicken Traybake and my recipe for Harissa Prawns with Coconut Cauliflower Rice. All delicious, healthy and, of course, easy peasy!
If you follow me on Facebook or Instagram, you will have seen this delicious and healthy salad already. I created it one day last week when I was trying to work out what to have for lunch. I really wanted something healthy but also delicious AND quick AND easy. I ended up throwing together a few of my favourite ingredients, including a bag of ready cooked quinoa and it was one of those lovely moments where it just ‘worked’ – a super healthy, delicious lunch dish in a matter of minutes, with very little faff. I know I’m going to be having this again and again!
This lovely vegetarian salad is also incredibly easy to adapt to whatever you might have in the fridge. You could switch the roasted squash and tomatoes for courgettes, aubergine or cauliflower. Or don’t bother roasting any veggies at all and instead throw in some raw salad vegetables, such as peppers, radishes or cucumber. You could swap the feta cheese for goats cheese, if you prefer. Or leave the cheese out entirely to make this vegan and dairy free, adding in a handful of toasted pine nuts or pumpkin seeds instead.
Alternatively, you could make this meaty by adding in some leftover chicken, turkey or ham. Or for extra vegetarian protein you could add in some chickpeas. Given how flexible and easy to adapt this salad is, it’s particularly great for families where some members eat meat and others don’t.
I used a bag of Merchant Gourmet ready cooked white and red quinoa – one of my store cupboard lifesavers, which makes whipping up a quick and healthy salad really super easy. But you could swap this for any bag of ready cooked grains of your choice – couscous, bulgur wheat, brown rice…or else you can cook up your own quinoa…30g dry weight is roughly equivalent to 80g cooked. So for this recipe you would need 100g dry quinoa. Cook according to packet instructions (or your own preferences…I usually cook my quinoa a little less than the packets suggest, as I like mine with a decent amount of ‘bite’).
Finally, to bring it all together, I drizzled over my current absolute favourite Honey, Mustard and Cider Vinegar Dressing…this combination is just a little bit awesome (in my humble opinion 😉 ). And it’s super, super simple to make….just throw all the ingredients into an old jam jar (clean obviously!), screw on the lid and shake.
Roasted Squash, Quinoa, Avocado and Feta Salad
Ingredients
Squash, Quinoa, Avocado and Feta Salad
- 2 tablespoons olive or rapeseed oil
- 800 g butternut squash chopped into 1cm cubes
- 200 g cherry tomatoes halved
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Black pepper to taste
- 250 g ready cooked quinoa (or cook 100g dried quinoa)
- 2 avocados chopped into 1cm/½inch cubes
- 150 g mixed salad leaves (I used spinach, watercress and rocket)
- 200 g feta cheese crumbled
Honey, Mustard and Cider Vinegar Dressing
- 4 teaspoons wholegrain mustard
- 4 tablespoons cider vinegar (or lemon juice, or white wine vinegar)
- 8 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons honey
- ½ teaspoons salt
- Black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 220C / 200C / gas mark 7 / 425F.
- Place the butternut squash and cherry tomatoes in a roasting tray and drizzle over 2 tablespoons of oil, ½ a teaspoon of salt and a few twists of black pepper. Toss the vegetables in the oil and seasoning and place in the preheated oven for 20 minutes.
- Next, mix together the dressing ingredients. Simply place all the dressing ingredients into a clean jam jar, screw on the lid and shake until everything is combined.
- Place the quinoa in a large bowl, add the avocado, feta, salad leaves and dressing and toss everything together to mix thoroughly.
- When the squash and tomatoes are cooked, add them to the salad and toss everything together again. Serve straight away or place in boxes in the fridge for work lunches.
Notes
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Sarah James @ Tales From The Kitchen Shed says
I love it when a recipe just comes together and your salad looks delicious Eb. I like how you can adapt it to whatever veggies you might have and honey and mustard dressing is one of my favourite dressings. x
Eb Gargano says
Me too!! Thank you 🙂 I’m glad to have found a fellow honey and mustard dressing enthusiast – it’s just the BEST!! Eb x
Alison's Allspice says
I might try this with sweet potatoes because I already have some at home! The dressing looks amazing! Pinned for later, Thanks!
Eb Gargano says
Ooh – that sounds good. I do so love roast sweet potato too! Yep, the dressing is amazing – and so simple to do!! 😀 Eb x
Jo @ Jo's Kitchen Larder says
What a beautiful salad and most of all full of substance! You know it will keep you going until dinner. And dressing… yum 🙂
Eb Gargano says
Yeah, it’s really filling…I had one of these bowlfuls after taking the photos and I honestly couldn’t finish it…and it kept me going for AGES!! Eb x
Monika Dabrowski says
I love a mixture of cooked and raw vegetables in a salad and this recipe looks delicious – and it’s made with quinoa so it’s a great lunch idea:)
Eb Gargano says
This combination really works – I especially like the roasted squash with the avocado – always a winner…and with feta too – YUM! Yep as you say this is a great easy peasy lunch idea…very little hands on prep and easy to do the night before for work lunches too. Eb x
Helen says
This is definitely my kind of meal. It looks and sounds delicious!
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Helen – it really is very delicious, and so easy!! 😀
Hope says
Quinoa, squash and avocado are some of my favourite things! This looks like the perfect lunch 🙂
Eb Gargano says
Me too – and they work so well together…plus they are all full of healthy goodness- WIN WIN!! This is a really fab lunch…wish I was having it today 🙁 Thanks for your kind comments. Eb x
Kate - gluten free alchemist says
All my favourite ingredients. I Love the combination….. a perfect lunch! x
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Kate!! The flavours all work so well together…and yes, they are some of my favourite ingredients too!! 😀 Eb x
Angela / Only Crumbs Remain says
Ooh this sounds absolutely lovely Eb, and not just because it contains feta 😉 I love a this sort of salad, it’s such a refreshing change to how salad used to be presented to me when I was small with each ingredient in it’s little section on a plate!!
Angela x
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Angela 🙂 I know – salads have changed a lot since we were little, haven’t they? Bit better than a limp lettuce leaf, dried out cucumber and tasteless tomatoes, eh? 😉 Eb x
Corina says
It sounds delicious Eb and looks really pretty too! Definitely the type of thing I’d also love to eat for lunch, especially as my husband is not very keen on quinoa so it’s one of those ingredients I have to make the most of when he’s not there. Thanks so much for sharing with #CookOnceEatTwice as well! x
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Corina 🙂 Shame your husband doesn’t like quinoa – but at least it’s something you can easily enjoy for lunch. It works so well in salads, doesn’t it? Eb x
Jenny Paulin says
this looks delicious Eb – so colourful and the flavours all sound so good together x
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Jenny 🙂 It really is a very yummy combination 😀 Eb x
Kirsty Hijacked By Twins says
Love this! What a delicious combination of flavours. Thank you for sharing with #CookBlogShare x
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Kirsty 🙂 The flavours do all go so well – and so quick and simple to through together. Perfect for busy days!! 😀 Eb x
Jacqueline Meldrum says
This is my kind of salad Eb, I just love it! Thanks for submitting it to Meat Free Mondays. I’m featuring your recipe this week and the roundup is now live. Right now for some sharing!
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Jac! And thanks so much for including it in your round up – I’ll be popping over later to see what other delicious recipes you are showcasing 🙂 Eb x
kate says
This salad looks so delicious. I love the combination of squash and feta. I often use squash in curries but only use about half of the vegetable at the time. This will be a great recipe to do the following day! #CookBlogShare
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Kate 🙂 It is a FAB way of using up half a squash – I ALWAYS seem to have one in my fridge…it’s a good job they last a long time! Eb x
emma says
This looks great. I really enjoy quinoa but I’ve never actually cooked with it myself so I need to pick some up. #freefromfridays
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Emma – quinoa is so great – lovely in a salad or stirred into a stew or curry. I sometimes cook my own, but these Merchant Gourmet packets are fab for a quick lunch! Eb x
Kellie O'Brien says
This is an incredible salad. Held a dinner party and not one piece was left. Store did not have quinoa so used black rice. Chopped some natural almonds and toasted them in a pan for crunch. Just perfect.
Eb Gargano says
So pleased you enjoyed this and it went down well at your dinner party! Love the idea of using black rice and adding almonds 😀