This recipe for Butternut Squash and Feta Salad is cozy fall in a bowl, featuring whipped tahini and white beans, pepitas, gently seasoned and massaged kale and warm spiced squash.
If you are looking for a hearty vegetarian dinner, look no further than this delicious butternut squash and feta salad. Whether it's early fall or late winter, the ingredients for this recipe, along with the warm spices, fit perfectly with the seasons. We love winter squash around here. In fact, we love it in holiday sides, like this Roasted Honeynut Squash with Maple Pecans, or for a quick lunch or weeknight meal, like this Sautéed Delicata Squash with Crispy Sage. There's just something so comforting about the sweet and savory flavor of winter squash that we just can't get enough of when the weather turns chilly.
Plus, we love a good vegetarian recipe! We have plenty of vegetarian recipes, if you are looking for some new ideas. And while this recipe feels like a bowl, it's squarely in the salad category! Check out more of our fresh salad recipes for some healthy inspiration.
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Ingredients
This fall salad recipe uses fresh produce along with some pantry staples. Here are the ingredients you'll need for this recipe:
- Butternut Squash. This recipe calls for about 4 cups of diced butternut squash, which is about 20 ounces. You can get that from a medium butternut squash (plus some leftovers) or using precut butternut squash.
- Feta. The feta cheese plays a primary flavor role in this recipe, providing an earthy, salty bite to the salad. You can certainly swap in goat cheese, if preferred.
- Kale. The greens in this salad are finely chopped or shredded kale. I like lacinato kale in massaged kale salads, but use whatever variety you'd prefer. I recommend leaving out the stems for a better texture.
- White Beans. The base of the salad has a hummus-like whipped white bean and tahini spread. Use any variety of white beans, like cannellini or navy beans.
- Tahini. A big spoonful of tahini is all you need to give the white bean spread a sesame flavor and creamy texture.
- Spices. I like to season the butternut squash cubes with a mixture of ground cumin, coriander and paprika.
- Lemon. Use a whole lemon to drizzle on the massaged kale and in the white bean spread to give both components nice clean brightness.
- Pepitas. Adding pepitas to the salad gives a satisfying crunch and nutty flavor.
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
This recipe comes together in about 30 minutes, with most of the time hands-off. Simply roast the cubes of butternut squash the prep the other components while they are in the oven. Here is how the recipe comes together:
If starting with a whole butternut squash, peel and cut into cubes, about ½-inch each. Reserve leftover squash for another purpose, or cube and roast the entire squash and use leftovers for another purpose.
Preheat oven to 425F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Add squash and drizzle with oil and sprinkle with cumin, coriander, paprika and salt. Toast in the oven until tender and slightly brown, about 25 minutes, stirring halfway through.
Remove stems from the kale and thinly slice. You should have about 8 cups of loosely packed shredded kale.
Place kale in a large bowl and add oil, lemon juice and salt and gently massage until tender, about 5 minutes. Add pepitas and feta and gently toss to combine.
Remove squash from the oven and cool on the counter for about 5 minutes.
While the squash cooks, add drained white beans, tahini, lemon juice and salt to a food processor or blender and blend until smooth. Add a bit of water, as needed, and continue to blend until light and fluffy, about 1 minute mixing on high.
Hint: Be sure to let the white bean mixture whip for at least 1 minute until light and fluffy. It should the consistency of a thick whipped cream..
Substitutions
There are plenty of tweaks you can make to this recipe based on your dietary needs or flavor preferences. Try the following:
- Vegan - Leave out the feta to make this recipe vegan. You can add some pecans or walnuts or even whole white beans, instead.
- Different Squash - Try this recipe using acorn squash or delicata. Simply remove the seeds and roughly chop into bite-sized pieces (no need to peel either squash) and roast until tender.
- Feta Swap - If you don't want to use feta, try substituting goat cheese for a similar creamy texture and salty flavor. You could even use parmesan, blue cheese or cheddar.
Serving Suggestions
Try this recipe as a main component of dinner. You can add in a side, like our Seared Green Beans with Spiced Almonds or try sprinkling on our Roasted Black Beans on top of the butternut squash salad.
This recipe also works really well as a healthy and satisfying lunch. Or, you can serve smaller portions as a side for dinner or a starter for a fancy dinner party. Try a full vegetarian dinner party menu featuring this squash salad as a starter along with our Chickpea Fritters (Easy and Vegan) for the main and Roasted Asparagus With Mint Gremolata and Yukon Gold Mashed Potatoes with Sour Cream for the sides.
Equipment
For this recipe you'll want a sturdy baking sheet like this Nordic Ware Natural Commercial Half Baking Sheet set. For the whipped white bean and tahini spread, use a food processor like this Cuisinart Food Processor (14-cup), which is powerful enough to handle just about anything! You could also use a high speed blender like the professional grade Vitamix E310 Explorian Blender. These are both pricey investments, but they'll last a long, long time! We've literally had both for more than 10 years and they get a lot of use in my home kitchen.
Storage
This is a great recipe for meal-prep! Simply roast off the squash and store in individual portions with the massaged kale and the white bean spread in a smaller container. You can have lunch for the whole week! This salad will last for up to 5 days in the refrigerator.
You can also prep this recipe in advance. Prep the butternut squash and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator and roast the next day. You can also make the white bean spread ahead of time and even the kale salad will keep well in the refrigerator.
FAQ
Butternut squash is low in carbs and packed with lots of vitamins and minerals. It has about 7 grams of fiber per 1 cup serving, in addition to lots of vitamins C and A, magnesium, potassium and manganese.
Butternut squash is best roasted (whole or in cubes), steamed and mashed, or boiled in soups or stews.
More Sides
Looking for other sides like this? Try these:
Dinner Ideas
Need some dinner inspiration? Check out these dinner recipes:
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Recipe
Butternut Squash and Feta Salad
- Total Time: 35 min.
- Yield: 4 salads 1x
Description
This recipe for Butternut Squash and Feta Salad is cozy fall in a bowl, featuring whipped tahini and white beans, pepitas, gently seasoned and massaged kale and warm spiced squash.
Ingredients
- 4 cups cubed butternut squash (from 1 medium butternut squash, peeled and seeded)
- 3 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
- 1 tsp. ground cumin
- ½ tsp. ground coriander
- ½ tsp. paprika
- 1 tsp. table salt, divided
- 1 (14 oz.) can white beans (such as cannellini or navy), drained and rinsed
- ¼ cup tahini
- 4 Tbsp. lemon juice, from 1 lemon, divided
- 2-4 Tbsp. water, as needed
- 8 cups shredded lacinato kale (stems removed), from 1 12 oz. bunch
- 4 oz. crumbled feta cheese
- ¼ cup pepitas, plus more for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Place cubed butternut squash on prepared baking sheet and drizzle with 1 tablespoon of the oil. Sprinkle with cumin, coriander, paprika and ½ teaspoon salt. Toss well then roast until tender and slightly browned, 25-30 minutes, stirring halfway. Cool at room temperature for 5 minutes before serving.
- Add the white beans to the base of a food processor or blender and add tahini, 2 tablespoons lemon juice and ¼ teaspoon salt. Pule until finely chopped then blend on high until light and fluffy, about 1-2 minutes. Add some of the water, as needed.
- Add kale to a large mixing bowl and add remaining 2 tablespoons oil, 2 tablespoons lemon juice and ¼ teaspoon salt. Gently massage until tender, about 5 minutes. Add half the feta cheese and the pepitas and toss well to combine.
- To assemble, spread about ¼ cup of the bean mixture on to a bowl or plate. Divide the kale mixture among bowls and top with the squash and remaining feta. Garnish with more pepitas.
Notes
- You can prep this recipe ahead by cutting the squash into cubes and storing in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 day. You can also make the massaged kale ahead of time.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
- You can swap in acorn or delicata squash for the butternut, if desired.
- Leave out the feta to make this recipe vegan
- Or use goat cheese instead of feta, if desired.
- Prep Time: 10 min.
- Cook Time: 25 min.
- Category: Salads
- Method: Roasting
- Cuisine: American
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