This roasted butternut squash quinoa salad is healthy, hearty and delicious. Full of bright colors, different textures and flavors, it makes a delicious fall lunch.

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There are some days when I look in the fridge and cupboards as I am trying to decide what to have for lunch and feel a bit uninspired. Then there are others whee it all seems to come together perfectly and I have everything I could want for a delicious lunch I hadn't even thought of making.

I had one of those latter days not so long ago, when this roasted butternut squash quinoa salad came into being. True, it was a bit of a throw in some of this, some of that, but all those this and thats were great together with each adding great flavor, color and all conveniently healthy, too. Plus the end result has that 'I'm starting to feel in the mood for autumnal things but don't quite want to let go of summer' feel. You know the one I mean.

How to make roasted squash quinoa salad

Dice the squash, toss with oil and allspice and roast until tender. Leave to cool.
Cook quinoa until the tendrils 'bloom' and leave to cool.
Roughly chop avocado, tomato and arugula. Coarsely grate the beet.
Whisk together oil, lime juice and honey.
Toss everything together, top with pumpkin seeds and cranberries and serve or store until needed.

The beetroot gives the quinoa a lovely purple color. Grating it up raw but finely means it has a bit of a crunch but is still easy to eat. In case you are wondering about the tomato color, I happened to have lovely green-red flecked heirloom tomato, hence it's not the typical red, but any variety would do.

The seeds on top give a nice crunch, and the cranberries that touch of sweetness, which compliments the squash. Avocado and arugula/rocket are just good in pretty much anything so I probably hardly need to say that they add variety in both texture and flavor. The dressing is a light but tasty mix of olive oil, lime and honey - a perfect accompaniment to all the lovely flavors in the salad.

Tips for preparing this salad ahead

You can roast the squash a day or two ahead of time when you have the oven on for something else or better still, just roast a bit more if you have some for dinner to have leftover for this. Quinoa can also be made ahead and kept refrigerated to use in various dishes like this and many others. Everything else is really quick to chop and throw together, plus you can prep all apart from the avocado ahead of time.

This butternut squash quinoa salad is colorful and full of tasty goodness. There's softness, crunch, and it fills you up nicely. It's also chock full of lots of healthy ingredients, but you don't feel like you're eating a stack of leaves either. What more could you need for lunchtime? A fork to gobble it down, and that's about it.

Looking for other ways to use quinoa? Try these!

Raw beet quinoa salad
Leftover steak and quinoa bowl
Caprese quinoa salad with beets and avocado
Cuban quinoa bowl with grilled sweet potato, mango avocado salsa and plantain
Plus see more lunch recipes for ideas to brighten up your midday plate!

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5 from 2 votes