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Roasted Butternut Squash Salad with Feta and Pomegranate

Nov 16, 2022 | 3 comments

This vibrant roasted butternut squash salad is PACKED with colours and flavour. Creamy feta, juicy pomegranate seeds, a punchy miso dressing and crunchy candied pumpkin seeds make it a serious winner. It’s great for weeknights, special occasions, holiday spreads or meal prep – it’s so versatile.

Large white and blue serving bowl with colourful butternut squash salad inside and pomegranate seeds on the side.

Colour, texture, flavour. There are just so many wonderful things going on in this vibrant salad. Sweet, creamy squash, salty feta, fresh pomegranate seeds, a sharp miso dressing and the MOST delicious crunchy salted honey pumpkin seeds you’ll be wanting to make much more of.

If you’re looking for a fresh, colourful salad for entertaining (this one is especially great for Christmas and Thanksgiving spreads) you’ve found it. Equally, it’s great to prep for lunches throughout the week, or enjoy it as a light weeknight dinner. It keeps well and you can make all the elements in advance, then just mix it when you’re ready to serve.

I don’t peel the squash here – you don’t need to for this dish and it saves a LOT of time and pain (I know it’s one of my least favourite things to do in the kitchen!) And we have to talk about those salted honey candied pumpkin seeds. They’re the perfect combination of sweet, salty and crunchy and are incredibly moreish – be careful not to snack on the lot before you’re ready to serve the salad!

Ingredients

The ingredients list for this salad is lovely and short – and should be pretty easy to find!

Ingredients for butternut squash salad laid out on a grey marble background and labelled.
  • Butternut squash. Like I mentioned above, you don’t need to peel it! You could also use another sweet pumpkin like Delica or Acorn, or sweet potato instead.
  • Feta. This provides a salty, creamy element that pairs so well with the rest of the salad. Try switching it out for a creamy blue cheese or chunks of pan-fried halloumi if you like.
  • Pomegranate seeds. These juicy little jewels are just so gorgeously festive and provide a wonderful pop of colour and freshness to the salad. If you can’t find a pomegranate, you could use seedless red grapes cut into quarters or dried cranberries.
  • Rocket. I love the pepperiness of rocket but you can really use any leafy green – spinach would be great too.

And that dressing! You’ll need white miso paste, lemon juice, honey (or use maple syrup) and olive oil.

MAKE IT VEGAN: Switch out the honey for maple syrup, and use a vegan cheese or just leave it out and sprinkle over a little nutritional yeast.

How to make it

Start by chopping up your squash. Cut it in half with a large knife, then scoop out the seeds (save them – you’ll use them for the candied seeds!). Slice the squash into cubes, then lay out on a lined baking tray. Scatter with a little salt and olive oil, give it a mix through, then pop into to oven for 40 minutes, giving the squash a mix halfway through the cooking time. We don’t want to take them too far – you’re looking for little char marks to just be forming around the edges. If they’re in there too long, they’ll soften a bit too much and be tricky to mix through the salad without falling apart.

While the squash is roasting, mix the dressing. That’s as simple as mixing all the ingredients in a small bowl with a fork until smooth and creamy. For the crispy salted honey pumpkin seeds, give the scooped-out squash seeds a quick rinse to remove any residue, then dry them with a paper towel. Get them into a dry pan over low heat and stir for a couple of minutes until they’re lightly brown. Add a little honey and mix it through, then go in with flaky salt. Transfer to a baking paper lined plate to cool and crisp up. You’re going to LOVE these – they’re incredibly moreish and make the perfect crunchy topping here.

Once the squash is very lightly charred and you can easily pierce a cube with a fork, remove from the oven. Arrange three-quarters of the rocket onto a serving platter, then toss the other quarter onto the tray with the cooked squash. Drizzle half the dressing over the cooked squash on the tray and mix it so the pieces are well coated. Transfer on top of the rocket leaves on your serving platter, then crumble over the feta, scatter over the pomegranate seeds and drizzle the rest of the dressing all over. Finish with the crispy salted honey pumpkin seeds!

Got a question?

Can I use a different pumpkin?

Yes! Any sweet pumpkin will be great – Delica or Acorn would be lovely (but you may need to peel them) – as would sweet potato.

Can I make this in advance?

This salad is brilliant for making ahead of time. You can have everything prepared separately and then just assemble when you’re ready:

– You can roast the squash a couple of days in advance and keep it in an airtight container in the fridge.
– The dressing can be made a week in advance and stored in the fridge in an airtight container or jar.
– The crispy pumpkin seeds will keep well for a week in an airtight container at room temperature.

Then all you’ll need to do is arrange the rocket, mix the dressing through the squash and scatter over the feta and pomegranate seeds. Just make sure the squash is at room temperature when you serve the salad for better flavour.

What can I use instead of feta?

Try using creamy blue cheese, sharp cheddar, pan-fried chunks of halloumi or even dollops of Boursin or cream cheese.

Like this recipe? Here are some other salads you might enjoy

If you make this, I’d love to know what you think! Leave me a comment below and let me know how you got on.

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Large white and blue serving bowl with colourful butternut squash salad inside and pomegranate seeds on the side.

Roasted Butternut Squash Salad with Feta and Pomegranate


  • Author: Kate Alexandra
  • Total Time: 50 minutes
  • Yield: 6 servings 1x
  • Diet: Vegetarian

Description

This vibrant roasted butternut squash salad is PACKED with colours and flavour. Creamy feta, juicy pomegranate seeds, a punchy miso dressing and crunchy candied pumpkin seeds make it a serious winner. It’s great for weeknights, special occasions, holiday spreads or meal prep – it’s so versatile.


Ingredients

Units Scale

For the salad – 

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 large butternut squash
  • 50g feta, crumbled (roughly 3 tablespoons)
  • 2 large handfuls of rocket
  • 1/3 cup pomegranate seeds

For the dressing –

  • 1 tablespoon miso paste
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 teaspoons honey

For the crispy salted honey pumpkin seeds –

  • 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds (use the ones from your butternut squash or from a packet – I like to use a mix)
  • 2 teaspoons honey
  • 1/2 teaspoon flaky sea salt

Instructions

  1. Prepare and roast the butternut squash. Start by heating your oven to 200C/400F fan and line a large oven tray with baking paper. There’s no need to peel your squash, I like the contrast of the crispy skin and soft centre. If it’s a bit old and tough, you may want to peel it though, so just play it by ear. Set the squash onto a large board, then carefully cut in half lengthways. Use a teaspoon to scoop the seeds out, then set them aside. Chop each squash half into small cubes, about 3cm squared. Transfer them to the prepared oven tray, then drizzle over 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 1 teaspoon of salt. Give them a mix, then smooth out onto one layer on the tray. Roast for 40 minutes, giving the squash a mix half way through, until the edges are just starting looking charred. PRO TIP: We’re arranging them on one layer on the tray to make sure they roast evenly, and don’t steam and go soggy.
  2. Make the dressing. Add 1 tablespoon of miso paste, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and 2 teaspoons of honey to a small bowl. Give it a good mix with a fork until smooth and creamy, then set aside.
  3. Make the salted honey pumpkin seeds. Give the set aside squash seeds a rinse under water to remove any squash residue, then dry with a paper towel. Get them into a dry pan over a low heat. Toast, stirring the seeds for a couple of minutes until smelling fragrant and starting to brown. Add the 2 teaspoons of honey and mix it through the seeds for another minute. The honey will sizzle and bubble up as you do this. Remove the pan from the heat then scatter over the sea salt and mix through. Transfer to a plate lined with baking paper and spread them out onto a single layer as they cool and crisp up. PRO TIP: Make sure you do line your plate – the seeds will firm up as they sit and they’ll stick to your plate if you don’t, which will make them very hard to get off (I have made this mistake!)
  4. Assemble the salad and serve. I like to serve this salad by arranging the different layers on a plate, rather than mixing everything together in a bowl. This way, you can really see every part of the salad and all the lovely colours. Place three quarters of the rocket to the base of a large serving plate. Throw the other quarter of rocket onto the squash on the tray and pour over half the dressing. Give it a mix through so the squash and rocket is well coated. Transfer them on top of the rocket that’s already on the plate. Crumble over the feta, then evenly pour the rest of the dressing all over the salad. Finish with the pomegranate seeds, then break off shards of the salted honey pumpkin seeds and scatter them all over the salad. Dig in. 

Notes

Switch out the butternut squash for another sweet pumpkin – like Delica or Acorn (you may need to peel them) – or you can use sweet potato.

You can prep the elements of the salad in advance, then assemble when you’re ready to serve. Roast the squash a couple of days in advance and keep in an airtight container in the fridge, make the dressing up to a week in advance and store in the fridge in an airtight container or jar and you can make the crispy pumpkin seeds a week in advance, they’ll keep well in an airtight container at room temperature. Then just arrange the rocket, mix the dressing through the squash and scatter over the feta and pomegranate seeds. Just make sure the squash is at room temperature when you serve the salad.

Swap the feta for pan-fried halloumi chunks, dollops of creamy blue cheese, cream cheese, goats cheese or boursin.

You can use red grapes, cut into quarters if you can’t find a pomegranate, or use dried cranberries.

  • Prep Time: 10
  • Cook Time: 40
  • Category: salads
  • Method: oven
  • Cuisine: mediterranean

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1 bowl

Keywords: festive pumpkin salad, winter salad, thanksgiving salad, christmas salad

Welcome!

I’m Kate, the creator behind Dished. I love creating flavour packed, simple (ish) recipes for you, designed for every day and special occasions.

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3 Comments

  1. Kara

    LOVE this recipe, we’ve made it a couple of times now! but those salted seeds are very dangerous….it’s hard not to keep eating them… xx

    Reply
    • Kate Alexandra

      Yay!!!! Hahaha yes they are very dangerous!

      Reply
  2. Zoe

    Great recipe! Ingredients were readily available, it was easy to make and went really well with a BBQ. Highly recommend.

    Reply

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