We love this yum fest of a recipe because it can be made in advance for entertaining or cooked and devoured immediately. Equally both taste great! It’s gluten free, packed with protein and full of heavenly flavours. The dish is easy to make plus it looks so pretty on the plate. From October through to January butternut squash are in season and we love the versatility of this nutty vegetable. As the vibrant orange colour suggests, it's a good source of Vitamin C, making it a great defender of the cold.
We can imagine this quinoa with butternut squash and walnut on a huge serving dish in the middle of the table at MoaAlm Mountain Retreat as part of a side dish at Christmas. The dish can be altered in so many ways, we have tried it with pumpkin, replaced the walnuts with cashews and used bulgur wheat instead of quinoa. We have even used this recipe to stuff into roasted aubergines. Endless options!
Half of a medium sized Butternut Squash
400g Quinoa
Splash of olive oil
1 red onion
100g walnuts
50g Pumpkin seeds
50g dried cranberries
A large handful of fresh spinach leaves
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
1 clove of garlic
100ml Olive oil
50 ml Balsamic vinegar
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp maple syrup
Salt and pepper to taste
Cut the butternut squash into cubes, slice the red onion and roast in the oven with a splash of olive oil for about 20 minutes. While the squash is roasting, cook the quinoa as per instructions (generally around 12 minutes in water that has boiled and then simmer). Add the walnuts to roast in the oven for about 10 minutes.
While everything is cooking, make your dressing by either whizzing all the dressing ingredients in a blender or finely chopping the garlic, adding the remaining ingredients in a jar, shaking to mix.
Allow the cooked quinoa to cool slightly by spreading out onto a baking tray. This prevents it from over cooking. Finally, chop or tear up your spinach leaves, and when the quinoa has cooled add all the remaining ingredients, drizzling the dressing at the end.
For similar recipes, check out our Red Onion Caramelised Rice.
If you would rather we cooked this recipe for you, then why don’t you join us this winter at MoaAlm Mountain Retreat for a week high in the Austrian Alps of East Tyrol. We offer plant based meals as part of our Yoga and Snowshoe Hiking Holidays.
#relaxinglyactive #veganrecipes