Taste of Fall Salad | Healthier Holiday Recipe

This fall salad combines the best of both worlds: delicious fall flavors and fresh veggies that your body will love! 

One of the things I love-hate about the holidays is how rich and indulgent all the foods are. It’s hard to find things that aren’t made with tons of cream, laden with sugar and full of fat. On one hand, I love it, because it’s one of the few times of the year that I really enjoy those foods. You won’t find me stuffing my face with green bean casserole or cranberry sauce any other time of the year. However, I hate how most of the holiday foods I enjoy don’t have many fresh veggies or the essential nutrients our bodies need. So I decided to take charge this year and create something that combined the best of both worlds. This fall salad has all the yummy flavors I love about Thanksgiving and Christmas, along with the leafy greens and fresh veggies my body craves. 

I knew right away that I wanted to use sweet potatoes and butternut squash in this recipe. I have talked about these two veggies a lot lately, so I won’t get into the details about them other than that they are amazing. Full of vitamins, healthy carbs and so much more! For a little bit of nuttiness and healthy fat I threw in some pecans, which was apparently a great life decision (according to Isaac). Before roasting the squash, sweet potatoes and pecans, I drizzled some pure maple syrup on top to add some rich fall flavor and a little bit of sweetness. End result: deliciousness. Before digging in, I decided to add some kale into the mix and I’m so glad I did. It gave the dish some freshness, and who doesn’t want to load up on Vitamin A, iron and potassium? One of the things I love the most about kale is that it holds up under heat, so I didn’t have to worry about a wilted mess when mixing the roasted veggies with my leafy greens. It ended up being more of a “warm salad”, and I actually loved it! The next day I mixed some of this leftover salad with some butternut squash ravioli and it was heavenly. I could have eaten that stuff all day, y’all! 

Taste of Fall Salad

Taste of Fall Salad

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• Author: Rebecca Hicks
• Total Time: 60

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Description

This fall salad combines the best of both worlds: delicious fall flavors and fresh veggies that your body will love!

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Ingredients

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• 2 medium sized sweet potatoes
• 1 medium sized butternut squash
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
• 2 tsp pink himalayan salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 3 cups kale

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400F. Line a baking pan with foil or parchment paper.
2. Wash the sweet potatoes, then cut into 1 inch cubes. Toss in the olive oil and roast for 20 minutes.
3. While the sweet potatoes are cooking, peel then cut the butternut squash into 1 inch cubes. Remove the baking pan and add the butternut squash, pecans, maple syrup, salt and pepper. Mix to combine and roast for another 20 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes and butternut squash are tender.
4. While the squash and sweet potatoes are roasting, cut the kale into strips and put in a large bowl.
5. Once cooked, remove the pan of veggies and let cool for 5 minutes. Place on top of the kale and serve warm!

• Prep Time: 20
• Cook Time: 40

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 6

Now it’s your turn to talk! Answer one of these questions in the comments below:
What is your favorite way to combine healthy and indulgent?
What is your favorite holiday dish?