This salad is a good example of how I love my salads in the winter – warm, hearty, and bursting with nutrition. Like a big hug. I have no desire to eat a cold salad right now (unless it’s this one, I suppose). It’s light, but still has that “stick to your ribs” quality I crave soooo much right now. Give me all the healthy comfort food!
I started by roasting Yukon Gold potatoes (one of my all-time favourite winter comfort foods!) and crunchy green beans with a bit of olive oil and a generous seasoning of sea salt and pepper. While it’s roasting, whip up a batch of quinoa (speltberries or millet might be nice too) and chop some green onion and kale. Whisk together a simple red wine vinaigrette and we’ll add some freshly roasted garlic (if you are already roasting veggies, you might as well roast a few cloves of garlic too!). When the potatoes and green beans are golden and lightly charred on the bottoms, throw it into a big bowl and fold in the quinoa, dressing, green onions, and kale. Toss on a big handful of pepita seeds for crunch and my favourite salad topper – sliced avocado. It’s the perfect soul-soothing, warm bowl of comfort food in the middle of January.
Warm and Roasted Winter Quinoa Bowl
Yield
6 servings
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
This is the ultimate bowl of winter comfort food! Yukon Gold potatoes and green beans are roasted until crisp and golden and then tossed with warm quinoa, shredded kale, green onion, and a speedy roasted garlic and red wine vinaigrette. I topped this cozy bowl with crunchy toasted pepita seeds and creamy sliced avocado. Feel free to swap the potatoes with whatever variety you have on hand (yellow or red potatoes work great in a pinch). Spelt berries or millet might be a nice sub for the quinoa if you feel like changing up the grain.
Ingredients
For the salad:
- 2 large (400 g) Yukon Gold potatoes, chopped into 1/2-inch chunks (2 1/2 cups)
- 12 ounces (350 g) green beans, trimmed and chopped into 1-inch pieces (3 cups)
- 3 large garlic cloves, peel left on
- 1 tablespoon (15 mL) extra-virgin olive oil
- Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 cup (200 g) uncooked quinoa
- 1 cup (40 g) stemmed and finely chopped kale (optional)
- 3 medium (50 g) green onions, thinly sliced (optional)
- 1/4 cup (40 g) toasted pepita seeds
- 1 large ripe avocado, pitted and sliced
For the dressing:
- 1/4 cup (60 mL) red wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup (60 mL) extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 teaspoons (10 mL) Dijon mustard
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- Freshly ground pepper, to taste
- 1 tablespoon (15 mL) pure maple syrup, or to taste
Directions
- Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C) and line one extra-large baking sheet (or two large baking sheets) with parchment paper.
- Place the chopped potatoes, green beans, and garlic cloves (leaving the peel on) onto the baking sheet. Toss with the oil and season with a generous amount of salt and pepper. Spread into an even layer.
- Roast for 15 minutes, then remove from the oven and flip before continuing to roast for about 10 to 20 more minutes until the potatoes and beans are tender and golden brown in some spots.
- Meanwhile, cook the quinoa by adding it to a medium pot along with 1 3/4 cups (430 mL) water. Bring to a low boil before reducing heat to medium-low. Cover and cook for 12 to 14 minutes, until the water is absorbed and the quinoa is fluffy. Remove from heat, fluff with a fork, and leave the lid on to keep warm.
- Prepare the dressing: In a small bowl, whisk all of the dressing ingredients together and set aside.
- When the vegetables are finished roasting, trim the end off each garlic clove and push the roasted garlic out. Mash the garlic with a fork, then whisk it into the dressing until combined.
- Spoon the potatoes and beans into a large serving bowl. Now add the quinoa along with the kale and green onions (if using). Pour all of the dressing onto the vegetables and toss to coat.
- Season with salt and pepper (to taste) and top with pepitas and sliced avocado. Serve immediately. The salad will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for a few days. Leftovers can be reheated in an oiled skillet over medium heat until warmed through. It's great cold, too!
Tip:
To boost the protein even more, try adding chickpeas (roasted, if desired), adzuki beans, Great Northern beans, or lentils.
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)
A huge thank you to those of you who volunteered to be a recipe tester for my second cookbook! I’m blown away by the response – I wish I could take you all up on your offer to help. If you aren’t emailed by the end of next week, don’t despair. There’s a good chance that I will need more help in the future so I might end up emailing more volunteers down the road. I will keep your submissions on file if that’s ok with you (no pressure if you can no longer volunteer, of course). PS – I haven’t emailed anyone yet, but I should be sending out an email within a couple weeks once I get my testing site ready to roll. Thank you a million!
I am trying to go oil free. With your dressing what would I replace the olive oil with?
Hi Dianne, I’m sorry I really don’t know of an alternative. You might be able to get away with using a bit more vinegar and then adding some liquid sweetener to offset the vinegar tartness. Pleas let us know if you try anything out!
Just made this and OMG it was was INSANELY good! I changed it up a tiny bit – used broth for quinoa instead of water and sauteed/steamed the kale & green onions instead of raw (I don’t love raw kale). This really turned out great! Next time, I might use sweet pot instead of reg – just to see how that goes.
My roommate and I discovered this recipe about a year ago and it is now a house staple. We often change it up with the roasted veggies as well, and add cubed sweet potatoes and also BEETS (which turn the quinoa a bit red, but it makes for perfect Christmas colours so that’s cool!) yum.
Good change! Thanks, Bekah. I will use this recipe many times for my family.
Very tasty and light. Loved it!
Hm. I love all these ingredients… But I found the dressing sooo vinegary! I actually came back to see if I added too much vinegar but it appears I followed the recipe exactly… I think it needs way less! And I’m a vinegar fan. I’m going to try adding some more olive oil to my leftover dressing.
Hey Allison, Oh no! I’m sorry you didn’t like the dressing. I’m a big vinegar fan, admittedly, lol. I’d suggest adding more oil and/or sweetener (such as a bit of maple syrup) to balance the flavours to suit your taste. :)
is there soposed to be garlic in the dressing?
The salad is nice, but the sauce has wayyy too much vinegar. Avoid that 1/4 cup vinegar and add fresh lemon juice in the next batch instead.
Hey N, Thank you so much for the feedback! I do love a tangy dressing, but I understand it’s not everyone’s cup of tea. A quick fix for a dressing that’s too acidic is adding a bit of sweetener like maple syrup and a bit more oil. I’d love to hear how the lemon version goes next time, though!
Love love LOVE this recipe. I’ve made this many times, many different ways, with what I have on hand. Spinach in place of the kale is great, or couscous if you have no quinoa. Do not leave out the avocado on top, it makes the flavour scale of this meal go to 11! When I made it the first time, I didn’t think the dressing was balanced enough so I added a touch of maple syrup, which I see now has been suggested a few times. We make this all the time, and not just in the winter :)
Hey Gabryelle, Thank you so much for your feedback! I love your tweaks. :) I’m going to make a note in the recipe about the dressing too, thanks!
If like to make this for a baby shower…will it be ok if I make it in the morning and then re-hear right before serving? Any other suggestions??
Hey Angela, If making it in advance I would suggest leaving off the dressing and mixing it in right before serving. Hope this helps!
Made this for supper tonight. As all the other reviews stated, it was delicious! Can’t eat potatoes so I used cauliflower instead. I don’t usually like sweet but I thought the dressing was perfect. I will be making again!
This recipe is one of my favorites. The only thing I would disagree with is the serving size, this definitely is not six servings, my husband and I ate all of it in one sitting. So if you want leftovers I would double it.
So glad you enjoyed it Tara!!
This was simple and delish. I used lentils for extra protein and subbed out toasted pine nuts for toasted pepitas since I had them on hand. Will definitely make again. My boyfriend loved it! I would agree with Tara though that this was not 6 servings – I got about 4 out of it. Too good to only eat a small portion!
The link https://ohsheglows.com/2019/03/07/meal-prep-week-long-power-bowls/ that I followed to this dressing recipe called it Roasted Garlic and Red wine vinegar dressing. I do not see roasted garlic listed as an ingredient. How much do you use a whole bulb or a certain number of cloves?
In the directions, you’ll see that there are garlic cloves included in the potatoes and green beans that go into the oven. The ingredients call for 3 garlic cloves with the skin left on.
I’ve made this salad so many times over the years…it’s a favorite of mine, super yummy while healthy and filling. Love it and will continue to make it!
I love this salad and make it all the time – I’ve also added Yam, Brussle Sprouts, and Beets to the mix for roasting. Beets make it look like a dish for Christmas. :)
This is my favorite winter salad ever!!! Every time I make it for a group of friends it gets rave reviews! It’s very filling and super delicious! I substitute the green beans with asparagus and omit the green onions from the salad. I also don’t put mustard in the dressing because I’m allergic, but it’s still extremely delicious and everyone always asks for the recipe!
Made this last night and made my own modifications due to what was available at the store. Sauteed the kale and included shallots (shallots were extra tasty). Roasted Brussels sprouts, broccolini, and sweet potatoes. Use the rest of the ingredients as so and it turned out really good. I may roast some chickpeas and sunflower seeds and add them to the bowl but this to totally hit the spot. Great way to have a warm salad during fall/winter.
This salad SMACKED!! (That’s a good thing!! haha) Coming from a Mexican household, it’s tough to compete w/ my mother’s meat-based dishes (and rightfully so! lol). But I’m always on the look out to make plant-based dishes for the family. And this recipe takes the cake!!! It impressed my family, giving it a 11 out of 10!! My father had seconds lol I doubled the recipe but not the dressing! The dressing portion was perfect. I didn’t have avocado, pepitas, or green onions on hand. I used sherry vinegar instead of red wine vinegar and used red potatoes instead of the Yukon Gold potatoes. I also massaged the kale w/ a little bit of oil and a bit of the dressing before mixing everything in 😊 Hands down, this recipe is a keeper. Thank you !!!
I just want to thank you for this fabulous recipe. So easy and so very tasty! I found that the dressing is wonderful–not too vinegary as some people said. This is such an earthy kind of dish, and even though it takes a little time to come together, it’s definitely well-worth it. And you’re right: leftovers are great, too!
I am at a complete loss. I have made this salad numerous times and could have sworn I took the recipe straight from the cookbook. I have all 3 cookbooks and once again, could have sworn it was in her first. My husband and I are searching all 3 cookbooks not because we don’t have the recipe, but because we cannot find it in the cookbooks. Can someone PLEASE tell me what cookbook this recipe is in before I lose my mind. Thank you.
This is one of my favorite winter meals and i’ve made it a hundred times with many variations. Today I added a scoop of horseradish to the dressing and it took the flavor over the top. I also use store bought furrikake instead of sesame. Soo good.