Roasted Squash Salad with Crispy Shallot & Balsamic Reduction

This salad is sure to impress even for those who don’t like to eat salad (like me). Highly recommend making this for yourself!

I made this for dinner guests using goat cheese and I already had a bottle of balsamic glaze and a jar of crispy fried shallots from the store on hand so this recipe came together super quick!
I wouldn’t skip any of the ingredients; all together, they are perfect. I am not a salad type of person, (especially salads with arugula) but this really hits the spot. Filling, super flavourful, and delicious!

I’ve made a variation of this salad for the last few holidays and it’s always a hit! I usually use a delicata squash and goat cheese, omit the dried fruit and sometime omit the salads – it’s super simple this way and still a filling and festive salad.

Absolutely fantastic salad! I used cornstarch instead of brown rice flour, and feta in place of the macadamia nut cheese. I also added some leftover chickpeas from your Chickpea Shawarma Sandwich. and found it delightful. The flavors really melded beautifully and added another level to this wonderful salad. Thanks for all the yummy goodness!

Just made this with the crispy chick peas and it was absolutely gorgeous!

Delicious! I didn’t make the vegan cheese, I already had balsamic glaze, and I used normal all-purpose flour. This is definitely moving into my “staple” category. Easy, filling, healthy, and super yummy.

WOW! This is one of my favor MB recipes. Loved the sweetness of the squash, mixed with the crispy shallots and zing of the balsamic. My boyfriend loved it too. On the list as a Thanksgiving salad and on to my second week in a row of making it. I used arrowroot starch and they did kind of glob together but I just kept adding oil and more heat until they crisped up. Then I just chopped them afterwards. If you use the arrowroot, just give it some extra time- they’ll crisp up!

Just an amazing combination of flavors and I love the crispy shallots! Will be adding those to lots of salads!

Fantastic. Just make it. You will not regret it.

Soooo good! What a great combination. I bought vegan cheese (Kite Hill) and used balsamic glaze from Trader Joe’s, but used her recipe for delicata squash and crispy shallots and the combo was delish!

OMG…. This is absolutely amazing. I have been plant based on and off for a number of years. I recently found your blog of 18 plant based salads and this was on it. My mouth is SO HAPPY! LOL! I used delicatta squash although I don’t think the type of squash matters much, I also used cranberries because I did not have currants on hand.

This is my first food review ever. THANK YOU!!! I will definitely be making this again!

Hi, i saw this salad on Instagram, and it inspired me. I used hokkaido squash, which is my favorite, I added baby spinach leaves, and next to the squash I baked a big beetroot. I’m new in the plant based foods so I wanted to make it really complete, I was afraid that the man in the family won’t feel satiety, so I cooked a little puy lentils as well. My vinaigrette was also a bit different I used the balsamic vinegar, and some lemon, I added a little olive oil and a teaspoon of seed mustard. At the end I sprinkled the salad with some sunflower and pumpkin seeds and a little camborzola cheese. I know it sounds a bit too much, but it was a big succes. I fed three man and they were quiet and enjoying every bite, with the different textures and flavours.Thanks for the great recipe!

Delicious salad. I made extra crispy shallots since they were so tasty and used a store balsamic glaze to save time. Even my big meat eater boyfriend loved this salad! It is a real crowd pleaser.

This is the first vegan dish that I have made, together with MB Grilled Romaine Ceasar Salad with Herbed White Beans – so easy and quick to make, absolutely delicious and made me look like a One Hat Restaurant Chef! My husband and I loved the combination of flavours and despite having full plates, the email was very light. Absolutely love Minimalist Baker and can see 50 recipes that I want to make. Thank you for sharing your wonderful knowledge, skills and culinary delights!

This salad tasted incredible. It’s great to know what I’m eating not only tastes good, but is good for me! I used goat cheese, since that’s what I had on hand, dried blueberries and mixed spring greens. All around delicious. Looking forward to making it again and again :)

Another 5 star recipe! This is the easiest squash I’ve ever cooked with! Yum ?

I didn’t want to buy brown rice flour just for this, so i used Arrowroot starch and it was off— the shallots didn’t crisp up. They got kind of stretchy and chewy. Still tasted alright but not as good had they been crisped up!

I loved this salad! I substituted in dried cranberries, goat cheese, and added delicata squash cut on the cross section to make pretty flower shapes. Also, I used Nonna Pia’s balsamic reduction instead of making my own, and added a thin drizzle of olive oil. It was beautiful and delicious! Thanks for a great recipe.

One of the tastiest salads I’ve ever had! Would be perfect for Thanksgiving as well. The only change I made was to use honey goat cheese and dried cranberries. My husband raved about it. I’ll slice my acorn squash thinner next time – got a huge one at the market and it was a bit cumbersome but still delicious. Thank you!

This salad almost seemed too simple that I wasn’t going to try it. I’m glad I didn’t write it off though because it will now be on my rotation! I made this salad using a butternut squash and my, OH MY was this delicious! I don’t know if I’ve been getting “bad” squashes or just not roasting them at the right temperature but this time the butternut squash got so candy-like and carmelized. Then, the crispy shallots and crisp nuts. OOHHH! ? For anyone wondering, this is a pretty sweet but hearty salad. My sister isn’t a fan of squashes and sweet salads but my parents and I both enjoyed the dish.

This was amazing. The ONLY dish people went back for seconds at Thanksgiving dinner. I did have a few leftovers with it all mixed together-dressing and squash-and had it for lunch the next day and it was magical.
Making it again for lunch tomorrow with some butternut squash for my après ski meal and wine.

This salad is fantastic! So flavorful and a great balance of textures. Love the balsamic reduction!

This salad is beautiful and met some of my omnivore partner’s likes (arugula, dried berries, pepitas, basalmic reduction), but not all (squash is suspect).
This was amazing. I wasn’t sure as I brought it all together, my attempt at the shallots was lackluster and since we don’t do squash a lot I was worried that it wasn’t done enough. I cooked an extra 5 minutes as my slices were chunky.

It was amazing. Definitely going into the meal planning rotation. We both loved it.

Dana-you are amazing. Thank you.

I made this for a work potluck and it was a huge success. Normally I would be turned off by squash with the rind still on, but it actually adds a nice texture. I was pressed for time so I subbed Kite Hill Ricotta for the macadamia nut cheese and it was dreamy. I’ll be making this again.

I followed this recipe to a T, adding everything optional. It was off the charts good. It was beautiful and gourmet, and all the flavors melded so wonderfully. My husband said it was the best salad he ever had. The macadamia cheese was the bomb. The shallots…dang! Just everything I about it. Thank you!!!

Just made this today. Such a good recipe. Every ingredient added so much awesome flavor. Even picky eaters in the family loved it. Very yummy fall/winter salad.

Fantastic recipe! Made it for my Thanksgiving contribution and forgot the balsamic reduction at home. And it was still delicious! Thanks!

I made the macadamia cheese after soaking it for one hour in hot water; but my Cuisinart Food Processor made it slow; it took ten minutes and as you mentioned 1tbs more each time. It is perfect; the squash I had used was already cut and frozen (organic); they are a little mushy but that is okay, it is for me only; I wanted greens and cranberry sauce; instead I got a salad that has dried cranberries, squash and argula; this is a wonderful way to eat well and enjoy the day. I love your recipes thank you.

This recipe was way better then I expected it to be (and I was expecting it to be great)!! I make a lot of your recipes, but this is the first time I’ve commented. You come up with such wonderful recipes and I hope I can be as creative as you someday!

I didn’t have a lemon for the cheese but it really needs it. I can still add it to the leftovers though. I was tempted to add sugar to the reduction because I wanted something thicker (and sweeter), but I didn’t for health reasons. I added some cornstarch and it thickened up beautifully.

When everything came together its was soooo good! Thanks!

This salad is a. maz. ing! So many beautiful flavors coming together make it a perfect fall salad. I am not vegan so I used crumbled feta for the cheese and it was delicious. I also substituted sweet potatoes for the squash. Really, really loved this. I immediately marked it as a favorite and will be making it again. Yum!!!

I made this and forgot the pepitas! Taste was amazing but I really missed that crunch. Next time I will remember! Love the balsamic reduction, I could actually eat that on it’s own. And the mac cheese was great! My first time making vegan cheese and it really wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be. I’m beginning to really love nutritional yeast.

To prepare the squash:
Cut in half scoop out seeds. Leave skin on.
Place on counter and slice into thin slices. Place on baking sheet and bake in oven as directed above. It’s THAT simple :) hope this helps all of you!