Enjoy Layered Harvest Quinoa Salad, a salad with butternut, kale, spinach, mandarin oranges, topped with tart dried cherries, feta cheese, and spicy pecans!

Layered Harvest Quinoa Salad Recipe

Friends, perfect for Thanksgiving or fall entertaining, enjoy this Layered Harvest Quinoa Salad. You can serve it in a large glass dish (so pretty), or you can mix it together in a large bowl to serve. You may have tried my Layered Holiday Kale BERRY Salad (with a different dressing), which is also yummy!

Try a new recipe for Thanksgiving

We should not be afraid to try something new! Which means for me, experimenting with recipes. This Layered Harvest Quinoa Salad recipe is light and delicous, and a beautiful salad for fall and Thanskgiving.

Layered Harvest Quinoa Salad - how to

Here are a few more fall salads to try:

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Apple Pecan Fall Salad from Wine and Glue.

Autumn Cobb Salad from Foodie Crush.

And my very popular Asian Chicken Cranberry Salad!

How to make a quinoa salad

Starting with quinoa, cook it on the stove-top and allow to cool.  Mix lightly with a lemon dressing. You also have the option to use farro, or both!

While you’re chopping the spinach and kale and preparing the other ingredients, roast the butternut squash with olive oil and salt.

Layered Harvest Quinoa Salad - thanksgiving

Layered Harvest Quinoa Salad

Easy to make, we always keep mandarin oranges stocked in pantry.

Spicy nuts are the finishing touch, in my opinion. You can also use regular pecans if you prefer. Then cherries on top? DELISH.

Tasty Layered Harvest Quinoa Salad

Living close to the Deschutes River is an amazing blessing, one that I never want to take for granted.

Sunset is my favorite time to be taking it all in … walking away from my busy schedule to this place of peace and beauty. Even for 10 minutes, just to pray, and smell the fresh air, taking in the beauty.

Layered Harvest Quinoa Salad - Sunriver Resort

The drama of light and shadows, and the beautiful colors that are hard to explain, are peaceful and powerful.

My spirit say yes.

It changes my perspective, and fills my heart with gratitude. With gratitude I think less about myself and more about others.

It’s funny how that works.

Restoration of the soul should be a daily experience!

BEST Layered Harvest Quinoa Salad recipe

Serve for Thanksgiving

I hope you enjoy this scrumptious Layered Harvest Quinoa Salad with your people this week. I say “your people” because it could be family, neighbors, new or old friends, someone lonely, someone sad who needs a “boost” of friendship, or someone celebrating a small success.

Don’t wait for Thanksgiving to serve this, make it soon!

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Layered Harvest Quinoa Salad

Optional to not layer the salad; mix together and serve!
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
Yield: 6 -8
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Ingredients
 

  • 3-4 cups cooked quinoa, or farro, or a mix of both
  • 1 pound butternut squash, cut in very small pieces
  • 5 tablespoons olive oil, divided
  • Salt
  • 4 cups spinach, chopped in small pieces
  • 4 cups kale, chopped in small pieces
  • 1/2 small red onion, diced
  • 2 small cans mandarin oranges, drained
  • 4 tablespoons lemon juice, divided
  • 1/2 teaspoon paprika
  • 2 teaspoon honey
  • 1 cup feta cheese
  • 1 cup dried tart cherries
  • 1 cup spicy pecans, I buy at Trader Joe's

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Place the butternut squash pieces on a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet; drizzle with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Salt and pepper and bake for 20 minutes or until tender. Allow to cool.
  • Add cooked (cooled) quinoa or farro, or both, to a large bowl. Add 3 tablespoons of olive oil, 4 tablespoons of lemon juice, paprika, honey, and salt to taste.
  • In a glass bowl, layer the chopped spinach, quinoa mixture, drained mandarin oranges, chopped kale, butternut squash (cooled), feta cheese, spicy nuts, and dried tart cherries.
  • Serve either in a large glass bowl (pretty presenntation), or dump in a large bowl and mix together (more practical). ENJOY!
Cuisine: American
Course: Salad
Author: Sandy / Reluctant Entertainer
Did you make this recipe?Tag @reluctantentertainer on Instagram and hashtag it #reluctantentertainer!

Layered Harvest Quinoa Salad Recipe