With only a few ingredients, this delicious Quinoa Spiced Pumpkin Salad with Walnuts is brimming with Mediterranean flavors and so easy to make. It’s a fantastic, healthy, and hearty make-ahead salad for any occasion.
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Why This is a Great Pumpkin Salad
- This fantastic fall salad is easy to make, even with the extra steps of roasting pumpkin and cooking quinoa. Pumpkin, like potato and roast beetroot, makes a great salad base. This is one of those hearty vegan salads you don’t even realize is vegan.
- This spiced beauty improves over time, so you can prepare it a day ahead and store it in the fridge, adding leafy greens last minute.
- As with my Roast Pumpkin and Feta Mini Frittatas, if you’re roasting veggies, roast a batch. The same goes for quinoa. Both keep well in the fridge and can be used in various recipes throughout the week.
Ingredients
- Pumpkin: I like to use butternut squash for this recipe as it is sweet and easy to prepare. You can use any pumpkin of your choice.
- Salad Greens: I like baby arugula leaves or baby spinach. Whichever greens you use, choose dark greens that won’t wilt.
- Olive Oil: I find this salad, with the moist, roasted spiced pumpkin, does not need a dressing. A drizzle of olive oil is more than sufficient.
- Garlic: I like the mellow flavor of the roast garlic added to the pumpkin after cooking. If you don’t want to use roasted garlic, leave the garlic out or add garlic powder to the pumpkin before cooking.
See my recipe card below for a complete list of the ingredients with measurements and notes.
Recipe Variations and Substitutions
- Add Feta: Sprinkle with feta for a smooth, salty addition. Use vegan feta to keep the salad vegan.
- Spice it Up: Add chili if you like more spice
- Walnuts: You can substitute walnuts for other nuts, such as pecans, almonds, pine nuts, pistachios, or cashews, toasting them lightly first.
Step by Step Instructions
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 420F
Step 2: Cut the pumpkin into cubes and toss in a large bowl with the olive oil, cumin, coriander, paprika, and salt, ensuring they are well coated.
Step 3: Spread the pumpkin on a baking sheet in a single layer and scatter the whole garlic cloves around (skins on).
Roast in the oven for about 30 minutes until the pumpkin is tender and has a lightly browned, caramelized finish. You may need to toss them halfway through for an even finish. At this point, check the garlic. It needs to be squishy on the inside, not dry. This will take around 15-20 minutes of the cooking time. Remove the garlic if cooked and set aside to cool.
Step 4: While the pumpkin is cooking, cook your quinoa. The instructions for cooking quinoa are on the packet, and I have also included them in the recipe notes.
Step 5: Lightly toast the walnuts, toss them in a dry non-stick pan for approximately 5 minutes on medium heat, and watch them not blacken. Chop if you prefer roughly chopped walnuts over whole walnuts.
Step 6: Once the pumpkin is cooked, place it in your serving bowl and allow it to cool. At this point, drizzle any juices from the baking pan over the pumpkin, squeeze your roasted garlic cloves from their skins, and toss to coat the pumpkin. The garlic should squeeze out of the skin like a paste.
Step 7: When the pumpkin has cooled, combine all the ingredients except your greens—pumpkin, quinoa, onion, and walnuts. Make sure all the ingredients are well combined to mix through the spices from the pumpkin.
Step 8: Toss the greens with the pumpkin and quinoa mix when ready to serve. If you think it needs more oil, drizzle it with just a little.
Expert Tips
- Add the salad greens just as you are ready to serve.
- Whichever nut you choose, lightly toasting them in a dry pan will add extra crunch to the salad.
- Use large, fresh garlic cloves for roasting, and ensure you pull them out when they become soft. You don’t want them to dry out. They should be squishy.
How to Cook Quinoa
- Rinse the quinoa in a fine-mesh colander.
- Use a 2:1 ratio of water to quinoa – in this recipe- 1/2 cup quinoa: 1 cup water.
- Combine the water and quinoa in a pot and bring to a gentle boil.
- Reduce the heat to a slow simmer and cover the pot until all the water is absorbed.
- Depending on the quantity, this can take around 15 minutes.
- Remove from the heat, leaving the lid on, and allow the quinoa to steam for a few minutes more. The quinoa seeds will pop open when they are at their fluffy best.
- Fluff with a fork and serve or cool for use later.
Handy Salad Accessories for Make Ahead Salads
Transporting make-ahead salads isn’t difficult. With these handy salad accessories, you don’t need to worry about soggy salads.
Related Recipes
Did you try this Spiced Pumpkin Quinoa Salad?
Please leave me a ⭐ rating below and let me know in the comments how you enjoyed it.
Quinoa and Spiced Pumpkin Salad with Walnuts
Ingredients
- ½ small butternut squash pumpkin - Peeled, seeded and cut into cubes.
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika - you can use sweet paprika instead.
- ½ cup quinoa - uncooked.
- sea salt - Kosher salt.
- ¼ cup walnuts - toasted -either whole or roughly chopped
- ½ red onion - thinly sliced
- 6-8 large garlic cloves - skin on
- 1½ cups arugula leaves - or baby spinach
- *optional – chilli powder or flakes if you like spicy.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 420F
- Cut the pumpkin into cubes and toss in a large bowl with the olive oil, cumin, coriander, paprika, and salt, ensuring they are well coated.
- Spread the pumpkin on a baking sheet in a single layer and scatter the whole garlic cloves around (skins on). Roast in the oven for about 30 minutes until the pumpkin is tender and has a lightly browned, caramelized finish. You may need to toss them halfway through for an even finish. At this point, check the garlic. It needs to be squishy on the inside, not dry. This will take around 15-20 minutes of the cooking time. Remove the garlic if cooked and set aside to cool.
- While the pumpkin is cooking, cook your quinoa. The instructions for cooking quinoa are on the packet, and I have also included them in the recipe notes.
- Lightly toast the walnuts, toss them in a dry non-stick pan for approximately 5 minutes on medium heat, and watch them not blacken. Chop if you prefer roughly chopped walnuts over whole walnuts.
- Once the pumpkin is cooked, place it in your serving bowl and allow it to cool. At this point, drizzle any juices from the baking pan over the pumpkin, squeeze your roasted garlic cloves from their skins, and toss to coat the pumpkin. The garlic should squeeze out of the skin like a paste.
- When the pumpkin has cooled, combine all the ingredients except your greens—pumpkin, quinoa, onion, and walnuts. Make sure all the ingredients are well combined to mix through the spices from the pumpkin.
- Toss the greens with the pumpkin and quinoa mix when ready to serve. If you think it needs more oil, drizzle it with just a little.
Notes
How to Cook Quinoa
- Rinse the quinoa in a fine-mesh colander.
- Use a 2:1 ration water to quinoa – in this recipe- 1/2 cup quinoa: 1 cup water.
- Combine the water and quinoa in a pot and bring to a gentle boil.
- Reduce the heat to a slow simmer and cover the pot until all the water is absorbed.
- Depending on the quantity, this can take around 15 minutes.
- Remove from the heat, leaving the lid on and allow the quinoa to steam for a few minutes more. The quinoa seeds will pop open when they are at their fluffy best.
- Fluff with a fork and serve or cool for use later.
Alternate Ingredients
- Sprinkle with feta for a smooth salty addition
- Add chilli if you like more spice
- Switch out arugula for any other dark greens such as baby spinach
- Change walnuts for another nut of your choice, such as almonds, pine nuts, pistachios, or cashews. Toast lightly first.
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