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Try this squash and kale quinoa salad if you fancy a tasty, healthy, and gluten-free lunch. The recipe comes from Dr Alan Desmond’s cookbook The Plant-Based Diet Revolution and combines nutrient-dense ingredients to make a tasty salad.
Roasted squash and red onion bring sweetness and depth. Red quinoa adds protein and fiber, making the dish filling and energizing. Massaged raw kale softens in lemon juice and adds a fresh, earthy bite. A creamy cashew dressing ties it all together, with parsley, mustard, and garlic for extra flavor.
This salad is high in fiber and provides 18 grams of plant-based protein per serving. It’s a great option if you’re looking for a wholesome lunch or a light dinner. You can prep parts of it in advance, like soaking the cashews and roasting the veg, to save time later.
The salad is colorful, hearty, and easy to adapt. Serve it warm or chilled, depending on your mood or the season. It’s a perfect way to enjoy a wide variety of plant foods in one simple bowl.
Read more: Black-Eyed Bean Salad
Assembling your salad
Ingredients
- 1 small autumn squash deseeded and cut into wedges
- 1 red onion sliced
- ½ tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 100 g (⅔ cup) red quinoa
- 350 ml boiling water
- 1 head of black kale
- ½ lemon
For the dressing
- 50 g (⅓ cup) cashew nuts
- Small handful of fresh parsley roughly chopped
- ½ garlic clove finely chopped
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- ½ lemon
- 3 tbsp cold water
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- To make the dressing, put the cashew nuts in a bowl with cold water and leave them to soak in the fridge overnight. The next day, drain them well and place in a food processor or blender with the parsley, garlic, mustard, 1 tablespoon lemon juice and water.
- Blitz until smooth, scraping down the sides every so often. If the dressing tastes a bit gritty, add a dash more water and blitz again. Season with salt and more lemon juice to your taste.
- Preheat the oven to 200ºC/ Fan 180ºC/400ºF/Gas 6.
- Put the squash and onion into a large roasting tray with the olive oil (if using) and about 2 tablespoons cold water. Season lightly with salt and pepper and mix well. Place in the oven and roast for 20–30 minutes, or until the squash is tender and starting to color at the edges. Set aside until warm or cold, as you prefer.
- Meanwhile rinse the quinoa in a sieve under cold running water. Pour the boiling water into a saucepan, add the quinoa and cook gently for 12–15 minutes, until tender. Set aside until warm or cold, as you prefer.
- While the quinoa cooks, remove and discard the kale stalks. Tear the leaves into bite-sized pieces. Throw them into a large bowl with a good squeeze of lemon juice, then use your hands to massage the leaves for a few minutes.
- To serve, tumble the squash, onions, quinoa and kale together in a large serving dish. Spoon the dressing over the top.
Excerpted from The Plant-Based Diet Revolution by Dr Alan Desmond, published in 2021 by Yellow Kite, an imprint of Hodder & Stoughton. Recipes by Bob Andrew. Photography by Dan Jones.
Read more: Cauliflower, Butter Bean, And Chard Dhal
