January 5, 2015

Rainbow Roasted Vegetable Quinoa Salad

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Hearty, healthy and colorful, this rainbow roasted vegetable quinoa salad is a fantastic weeknight dinner! With lots of fresh veggies, mixed greens, nuts and an avocado ranch dressing, it’s full of flavor. Gluten free and vegetarian with a dairy free / vegan option.

A white bowl filled with Roasted Vegetable Quinoa Salad with dressing in a jar to the side.

After all the indulgence of the holidays, I’ve been craving all sorts of healthy, detox-y meals.

Now, don’t get all technical on me here. By detox I mean plenty of nutritious, whole foods. Lots of veggies, whole grains. You catch my drift.

And I sure as heck don’t mean a juice cleanse or anything of that nature. I think I would kill someone if I ever tried one of those … it would be bad. Very very bad.

So. I give you one of my recently dreamed up go-to salads for this holiday detox I keep blabbing on about.

As much as I love salad, when it’s my main meal, well, it needs to be interesting and consist of lots of stuff.

A baking sheet filled with sliced and chopped rainbow vegetables.

A jar filled with Avocado Ranch Dressing.

About This Roasted Vegetable Quinoa Salad

So. We have super pretty, warm roasted veggies that just happen to be kinda sorta in the colors of the rainbow. I may be missing yellow and blue but hey, not bad.

We have tri-colored quinoa (or regular quinoa – use whatever you would like!).

We have sunflower seeds (because I can’t stop eating them lately) and some walnuts, all on top of a bed of mixed greens.

And finally, a creamy avocado dressing that kind of tastes like an avocado ranch. It’s thick and herby and perfect for flinging across the top of the salad. Not only looks cool but tastes good too.

Healthy and like a flavor explosion in your mouth? Now that’s how I do holiday detox.

A white bowl filled with Rainbow Vegetable Salad with a fork in the dish.

Additional Salad Recipes You Might Enjoy:

Did you make this recipe? Rate and review it down below! I’d love to hear from you.

Roasted Rainbow Veggie Salad with Quinoa | cookiemonstercooking.com

Rainbow Roasted Vegetable Quinoa Salad

Yield: about 4 to 6 servings
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes

Hearty, healthy and colorful, this rainbow roasted vegetable quinoa salad is a fantastic weeknight dinner! With lots of fresh veggies, mixed greens, nuts and an avocado ranch dressing, it’s full of flavor. Gluten free and vegetarian with a dairy free / vegan option.

Ingredients

For the veggies:

  • 1 medium red onion, sliced
  • 1 medium red bell pepper, sliced
  • 1 medium green bell pepper, sliced
  • 4 cups cubed (¾ inch) butternut squash*
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • ¾ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon pepper

For the dressing:

  • 1 medium ripe avocado, roughly sliced
  • 2 tablespoons plain greek yogurt or plain dairy free yogurt**
  • 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • ½ cup milk of choice
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1 ½ tablespoons minced chives
  • 1 teaspoon minced fresh dill

For the salad:

  • about 5 ounces mixed greens
  • 2 ¾ to 3 cups cooked quinoa, cold***
  • ¼ cup sunflower seeds (I use roasted & unsalted)
  • ½ cup raw walnuts, chopped

Instructions

To make the veggies:

  1. Preheat the oven to 375ºF.
  2. Add the onion, both peppers and butternut squash to a large rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with the olive oil and sprinkle with the salt and pepper. Toss to combine and spread in an even layer.
  3. Bake for about 25 to 30 minutes, stirring once halfway through, until tender. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes.

To make the dressing:

  1. While the veggies are cooling, make the dressing. Add the avocado, greek yogurt, vinegar, olive oil, milk and salt to the bowl of a food processor. Process until smooth. Add in the chives and dill and pulse until combined.
  2. Depending on your preference, you may want to add more milk to thin out the dressing - feel free to tinker around to your liking! Just add a little bit at a time so you don’t go too far.

To assemble:

  1. Add some of the mixed greens to a bowl. Top with some of the quinoa, the roasted veggies and a sprinkle of the sunflower seeds and walnuts. Drizzle with the desired amount of dressing. Serve immediately.

Notes

*One (about 2 pound) butternut squash will give you this amount. Sweet potato is also great in place of the butternut squash. Just cube it up the same way.

Prep time will be quicker if you use pre-cut butternut squash.

**I like Kite Hill's greek-style plain non dairy yogurt here. Also, to keep this dairy free / vegan, be sure to use a dairy free milk.

***I use ¾ cup uncooked quinoa to get this amount of cooked quinoa. I like to make it a day or so in advance so it’s ready to go.

Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 340Total Fat: 23gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 19gCholesterol: 2mgSodium: 707mgCarbohydrates: 31gFiber: 10gSugar: 6gProtein: 8g

Nutrition data shown is an estimate provided by an online calculator and is for informational purposes only. It should not be considered a substitute for a medical professional’s advice.

© Ashley / Cook Nourish Bliss
Cuisine: American / Category: Main Dish
Dairy Free, Gluten Free, Lunch, Main Dish, Meatless, Recipes (ALL), Salad, Soy Free, Vegan, Vegetarian, Weeknight
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