I made this for Christmas for my family and it was so delicious I had to make it again. This time I managed to snap a photo of it and write down what I actually put together!
This salad is hearty so it could definitely be enjoyed on it's own or as a side. Or topped with chicken. It's very versatile and has something for everyone. I found some delicious salad toppers at Target that really brought the dish together in addition to the candied Butternut Squash. You can't go wrong with sweet pecans and cranberries on a salad full of tons of different flavors and textures.
I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!
I have always found Pomegranate seeds a little intimidating until I finally learned how to extract them. You just cut the Pomegranate in half and hit the arils into a bowl with a wooden spoon until you have most of them removed. Or you can go to Trader Joe's in the winter time and buy them pre-extracted and save yourself some time. I had to weigh my options. Drag 3 hyper kids to Trader Joe's which is already a 20 minute drive away to buy them or get my hands dirty. I choose to get my hands dirty ;)
Next is the Butternut Squash. It's already so sweet but add a tad of brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt to it and roast it at 400° until it's soft and lightly browning and it takes the dish to a new level. I used one small Butternut Squash for the salad but definitely would double or triple it next time to have as a side to pair with protein later in the week. Aim to find the smaller squash as those tend to have more natural sweetness to compliment the cinnamon and brown sugar.
Next is the dressing. I wanted something a little sweet and a little acidic to cut through some of the creaminess of the Blue Cheese Crumbles and the candied Butternut Squash. I made a Lemon Honey Dijon dressing that was quite fantastic on its own but even better paired with the heartiness of Kale.
I'm sure you could find something similar in the stores, but since this isn't an everyday salad, buying a specific dressing when I have the simple ingredients at home to make it seemed more practical. Again, dragging three kids to the grocery store sounded a bit daunting especially while we had plumbers at the house replacing our water heaters today. Fun times!
I never understood the hype around Kale until I learned to actually dress it properly. Turns out you have to massage the Kale. Who knew?! Lemon-based dressings are really great with Kale because it helps break down some of the toughness of the greens. It's a salad you can dress ahead and if you take your Kale for a spin in the salad spinner to remove all the excess water, the salad will keep well in the fridge for a day or two even with the dressing.
I assembled everything, tossed in the Butternut Squash, added Blue Cheese Crumbles, Cucumbers for an extra crunch and topped with the Pomegranate arils and these yummy individual packs of Orchard Valley Harvest Salad Toppers. The type was Glazed Pecans with dried sweetened Cranberries and Pepitas. I found them at Walmart and know they're at Target too, so easily accessible.
I am officially looking forward to lunch this week!
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