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Roasted butternut squash harvest wild rice salad in blue bowl with fork.
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5 from 4 votes

Harvest Wild Rice Salad

This Harvest Wild Rice Salad recipe is vegan and healthy. It's made with roasted butternut squash and cranberries in a maple Dijon dressing.
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time1 hour
Total Time1 hour 15 minutes
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Diet: Gluten Free, Low Lactose, Vegan, Vegetarian
Keyword: wild rice recipes, butternut squash salad, fall salad, gluten free wild rice salad
Servings: 8
Calories: 272kcal

Ingredients

For The Salad:

For The Dressing:

Instructions

Peel The Butternut Squash:

  • To peel the butternut squash simply remove the top and bottom of the squash with a sharp knife. This will give you a flat surface on both the top and bottom portion of the fruit and make it easier to peel and cut.
  • Place the flat bottom surface of the squash on a cutting board. Carefully remove the skin with a knife or a good quality vegetable peeler.
  • Cut the squash in half and scoop out the seeds from the bottom portion with a large spoon. Feel free to discard the seeds and membranes.
  • Cut each half of the squash into rounds and then cut the rounds into chunks. It’s important that the chunks are relatively the same size to ensure even cooking.

Roast The Butternut Squash:

  • Once the butternut squash is cubed place it on a large baking sheet. Drizzle 2 Tbsp. olive oil over the squash and toss to coat.
  • Sprinkle 1 tsp. each of garlic power, onion powder, and smoked paprika over the squash in addition to ½ tsp. each kosher salt and pepper. Toss until completely coated.
  • Place the baking sheet in an oven that has been heated to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Roast the squash for 25-28 minutes. The squash should be easily pierced with a fork or knife when done. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and set aside.

Prepare The Wild Rice:

  • To make the wild rice add 3 cups of water to a medium sauce pan. Bring the water to a boil. Once the water is boiling add 1 cup of wild rice.
  • Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover, and cook for 55-60 minutes. Once the wild rice is finished cooking place it in a strainer to drain any excess water and allow it to cool.
    Alternately, you can make the wild rice in the Instant Pot. See this recipe for detailed instructions to make Instant Pot Wild Rice.

Prepare The Dressing:

Assemble The Wild Rice Salad:

  • Place the cooked wild rice (yields 4 cups) and cooked butternut squash in a large bowl along with ¾ cup dried cranberries and ¾ cup sliced almonds.
  • Pour half of the dressing over the ingredients, toss, and repeat with the second half of the dressing. Toss until completely coated.
  • To Serve: Serve immediately or place in the fridge for a few hours if needed. Feel free to garnish with fresh herbs of choice (optional).

Notes

The dried cranberries can be substituted with dried cherries, figs, apricots, prunes or any kind of dried fruit. You can even use pomegranate seeds in place of the cranberries.
Feel free to swap out the almonds for any kind of nuts. Pecans, walnuts, hazelnuts, or macadamia nuts are all great choices. Seeds such as pepitas or sunflower seeds may be used if you have a nut allergy.
You can add feta cheese, Parmesan cheese, or any kind of dry, salty cheese if you’d like to add some richness.
Fresh greens such as spinach or Swiss chard may be added for extra flavor and texture.

Nutrition

Serving: 1cup | Calories: 272kcal | Carbohydrates: 40g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 155mg | Potassium: 458mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 7744IU | Vitamin C: 15mg | Calcium: 81mg | Iron: 2mg