Roasted Autumn Vegetable & Blue Cheese Salad
I am alllll about embracing the flavors of fall this year (and every year). If I can roast it, I’m gonna roast it. If I can caramelize it, I’m gonna caramelize it. If I am able to add pumpkin seeds to it, I’m prooobably gonna add pumpkin seeds to it! You get what I’m saying. Also, not in fall but in general life, if I can put avocado on something, you bet your butt I will.
All that being said and understood, this recipe should come as no surprise. Pair sweet, sweet roasted fall vegetables with cool, creamy avocado and crisp, clean lettuce. Top with a tangy, bright dressing and a bit of salty blue cheese, and you’re in autumn salad heaven.
Roasted Autumn Vegetable & Blue Cheese Salad
Salad:
6 cups chopped romaine lettuce
3 cups brussels sprouts, quartered
1 red onion, sliced
1 delicata squash, deseeded and cubed
1 avocado, sliced
1/4 cup gorgonzola crumbles
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
1/2 tablespoon cinnamon
sea salt!
Dressing:
3 tablespoons good mustard (I’m obsessed with Maille Dijon French mustard!)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1/2 tablespoon agave nectar or honey
fresh ground pepper & sea salt to taste
Heat up your oven to 400. Store the base of the salad, the romaine, into a huge lettuce bowl and set it aside to wait for its final glory.
Put your brussels, onion, and delicata in a roasting pan (I used my beloved Le Creuset French Oven) and toss them in a glug of good olive oil, a sprinkling of sea salt, and your cinnamon. Throw that in the oven to roast for about a half hour. Check on it halfway through to give it a good stir and make sure your vegetables are getting nice and browned.
In the meantime, make your dressing, which is the easiest thing ever – just whisk it together in a bowl or shake everything together in a mason jar (with the lid screwed tightly first, of course. Might seem like a dumb thing to point out, but… I’ve made that mistake before).
Once the vegetables are all roasted and sweet, remove them from the oven and let cool for about 5 minutes, then scoop them on top of the lettuce. Top that with blue cheese (it’s great because the vegetables are still warm, so the crumbles will get melty and kind of seep into the dressing!), avocado, pumpkin seeds, and a drizzle of dressing.
Then Instagram it with a bunch of annoying hashtags and make all your friends really jealous of your healthy and festive fall meal. Suck it, online friends.
This should make 4-6 servings, depending on if you’re serving as a main dish or a side! I recommend serving as a main, of course. You can add roasted chicken or turkey if you’re looking for a little more protein, but it’s pretty much perfect the way it is.
For more healthy recipes, cocktails, food travel, and restaurant reviews, check out ES Emily’s individual blog, A Time to Kale, or tweet her @emilyteachout.
