Roasted Squash, Kale and Quinoa salad

This warm salad is a filling and delicious packed lunch. It has three portions of fruit and vegetables and a source of omega-3s from the walnuts. Squash is packed with powerful carotenoids and kale is a fantastic source of calcium, iron and other micronutrients.

It is great for taking to work, packing into school lunchboxes and for when you need something healthy on the go.

Serves

4

Good for:

Lunch,
Dinner

Time:

10 mins prep
35 mins cook

Ingredients

200g quinoa (dried weight)
600g butternut squash, peeled and cubed
400g kale
60g walnuts, roughly chopped

120g raisins/sultanas
4 large handfuls parsley, chopped
Juice of 2 lemons, zest of 1 lemon
Pinch of cinnamon

Step by Step Instructions

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius (400 degrees Fahrenheit). Line a baking tray with parchment.

Step 2

Meanwhile peel and cut the butternut squash into cubes or small pieces and place these on the baking tray- put this in the oven for about 25-35 minutes.

Step 3

Rinse the quinoa and put into a small saucepan. Cover the quinoa with 3x the volume of water.

Step 4

Bring the quinoa to the boil and then let it simmer for 20 minutes, or until all the water has been absorbed.

Step 5

Add the chopped walnuts to a large frying pan and toast these for a few minutes until fragrant, taking special care not to burn.

Step 6

Next, add the raisins and juice of 1 lemon to the pan (save the other for later) with a drop of water. Cook this until the raisins start to become plump and juicy.

Step 7

Place the kale into a steamer and steam for 5-7 minutes, alternatively you can skip this step and add the kale directly into your frying pan to cook.

Step 8

Once the quinoa has finished cooking add this into the frying pan with the parsley, kale and cinnamon.

Step 9

Once roasted and soft, remove the butternut squash from the oven and toss it into the pan along with the rest of the ingredients.

Step 10

Give the salad a final mix and just before serving, top with the remaining lemon juice and lemon zest.

Notes

Sweet potato also works nicely in place of the butternut squash in this recipe, or why not try a combination of both.

You could roast the butternut squash the night before and cook a large batch of quinoa for the week, as this makes it a speedy salad to prepare the next day.

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