Butternut Squash Christmas Salad!

Finally getting my act together here to share the requested recipes from our vegan Christmas extravaganza! In all honesty, things have been so nuts around here that we haven’t really even been cooking and have resorted to vegan/ gluten free meal-delivery! More on that soon . . . Luckily for you, I do have some recipes saved up to share, though.

Butternut Squash-Arugula Christmas Salad

Ingredients:

1 large butternut squash, peeled and cubed into 3/4 inch chunks

Olive oil

Salt & black pepper

1 tablespoon pure maple syrup

3 tablespoons dried cranberries

3/4 cup apple cider

2.5 tablespoons cider vinegar

2 tablespoons minced shallots

3 teaspoons Dijon mustard

12 oz baby arugula

1/2 cup roasted and salted pecans

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 400F.

Place the squash on a baking sheet. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil, the maple syrup, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper and toss the squash in it. Roast the squash in the oven until tender (15-20 minutes), turning it once during this time. Add the cranberries for the last 5 minutes.

While the squash is roasting, combine the apple cider, vinegar, and shallots in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook for 6-8 minutes, until the cider is reduced to about 1/4 cup. Remove from heat and and whisk in the mustard, 1/2 cup olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper.

Add the warm butternut squash-cranberry mix and walnuts to the arugula in a large salad bowl and toss with the vinaigrette. Add salt and pepper to taste and enjoy!

**TIP: I have to admit that this recipe was all Mini . She did all of the hard work on this one, and the most labor-intensive bit was peeling and cutting the squash itself . . . Soooo buy the bagged, already-cut stuff from Trader Joe’s or the like if you need to save time!

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When I motivate to return to cooking, this is what I am going to try next– I heart kale!