Shredded Cauliflower and Squash Salad with Apple Butter Tahini Dressing
This shredded cauliflower and squash salad is topped with crispy ginger chickpeas and drizzled with a creamy apple butter tahini dressing. A complete, fiber packed and meal.
Why You’ll Love This Shredded Cauliflower and Squash Salad with Apple Butter Tahini Dressing
- Loaded with seasonal vegetables. Fall veggies are the best for roasting. I like to big batch roast them as they have hold up really well for leftovers. They are also super cheap to use, so if you are on a budget, this recipe is for you.
- More opportunity to properly season your veggies. Shaving, shredding or thinly sliced veggies creates more surface area for you to season your veggies appropriately for the best flavor.
- A nutrient packed bowl. Fall produce also happens to be very colorful, which is a good indicator of vital phytonutrients.
Key Ingredients and Substitutions
- Cauliflower: If not a fan of cauliflower, try swapping with some shredded cabbage or brussels sprouts instead.
- Squash: I used honeynut squash since it is in season. Feel free to swap with delicata squash, acorn squash, butternut squash or even sweet potato.
- Kale: I like to use Lacinato kale, but regular curly kale works too. Alternatively, try using arugula.
- Onion: I used red onions, but shallots or white onions can work really well here.
- Chickpeas: I used canned chickpeas that I drained and rinsed. When rinsing, make sure you rinse them really well as this will help reduce some of the carbohydrates that are associated with gas. If not a fan of chickpeas, try this with roasted lentils or butter beans.
- Tahini: A good quality tahini makes a big difference. I like to use the brand Alwadi.
- Apple Butter: You can typically find apple butter in the same section where you find jam in grocery stores. You can also get really good quality ones from farmers markets this time of year. Alternatively, feel free to use alternatives like pumpkin butter or even jams like fig jam.
- Seasonings: I used ginger, coriander, and and white pepper.
- Herbs: I used cilantro because I love cilantro, but this works super well with parsley or chives being substituted.
How to Make Shredded Cauliflower and Squash Salad with Apple Butter Tahini Dressing
Preheat the oven to 425F then prepare 3 baking trays with parchment paper.
Dry the chickpeas in a kitchen towel then place on a baking tray with 1 tbsp oil and 1/2 a tsp each of coriander and ginger with a pinch of salt and white pepper. Toss to coat then spread out in an even layer and bake for 20 minutes. Give the chickpeas a toss then roast for another 10 minutes then allow to completely cool.
To the second tray add the squash with 1/2 tsp each of coriander and five spice with a pinch of salt. Drizzle the squash with about 1 tbsp of oil then toss to coat, spreading the squash out evenly into a single layer. Roast for 15 minutes, flip then roast for an extra 5 minutes.
Cut the cauliflower into 1 inch florets or thinly slice the florets into 1/4 inch slabs. Place on the last baking tray with the onion, 1 tsp coriander and 1/2 tsp each ginger and garlic with a generous pinch of salt. Drizzle the tray with 1 1/2 tbsp oil then toss to coat (use additional oil as needed). Spread everything out into a single layer then roast for 20 minutes on the bottom rack. Flip then bake for an extra 10 minutes until charred around the edges.
While the veggies roast, add the kale to a bowl with the oil, lemon and a pinch of salt. Use clean hands to massage everything into the kale until it softens and turns a brighter green.
For the dressing, just add the tahini, apple butter, garlic, lemon, ginger, mustard, syrup, 1/4 tsp of salt and water. Whisk together until smooth, adding water as needed if you’d like your dressing thinner. Taste and adjust salt as needed.
Now assemble, transfer the squash to the tray of roasted cauliflower then top with the kale, cilantro, and sesame seeds then toss everything together with tongs. Serve the roasted veggie salad in a bowl or over a wrap and top with the chickpeas and a generous drizzle of the dressing.
Expert Tips
- Make this faster. What will take the longest is chopping by hand. However, you can end up using a mandoline or a veggie chopper to chop up your veggies with more efficiency. You can also choose to use pre-cut veggies like cauliflower florets and cubed squash to eliminate the need to chop all together.
- Cook it faster. Use the largest baking trays you have to fit as many veggies on your tray without overcrowding. This will allow everything to bake evenly, but quickly at the same time. Normally, I bake chickpeas on a smaller tray so I can fit it on the same rack as a different veggie I’m roasting (in this case I was able to fit it on the same rack as the squash that way I could roast all 3 trays at once. If you are unable to fit everything in the oven, feel free to roast your chickpeas in an airfryer if you have one available or start roasting the chickpeas first while you cut up your veggies.
- Adjust the sweetener. Apple butter is sweet (sometimes a little tangy depending on the apples used to make it). Feel free to adjust the amount of sweetener you add based on the natural sweetness of your apple butter.
Frequently Asked Questions
This recipe is gluten-free when using a gluten-free tamari. To make this soy-free use a coconut aminos. If you need this to be sesame-free, swap the tahini for almond butter or sunflower seed butter. Do note, changing to a different style of nut or seed butter may slightly alter the taste of the final product in which case it is important to adjust some of the individual ingredient components to balance out flavors (ie, use more tamari if you need it saltier, use more or less sweetener or apple butter as needed).
Baked salads are cooked salads, which means that you can eat this style of salad warm if you choose to. However, the elements of the salad are just as good cold too. So pick or choose your preferred way of enjoying.
No. You can use traditional cuts like regular cut cauliflower florets and cubed squash. I like shredding it more for the texture and cut size that allows me to eat this style of salad with a spoon. Shredding or thinly slicing veggies also happens to add more surface area to your salads, which allows them to be more appropriately coated in seasonings and sauces. But, by all means, cut the veggies the way you like or is more convenient to you!
Make It Balanced
I’d be happy to eat these veggies topped with chickpeas and sauce as is. But if you feel you need a little more to fill you up, consider the following:
- Energy: Serve this salad over your favorite grain like rice, quinoa, or farro. Choosing quinoa or farro can also help add extra protein.
- Protein: As mentioned already, you can choose a protein rich grain like quinoa or farro to complement the chickpeas. Or serve this salad with a side of your favorite baked tofu or tempeh.
More Baked Salad Recipes
- Baked Shredded Brussels Sprout Salad with Smashed Potatoes
- Roasted Cabbage Salad with Maple Miso Dressing
- Roasted Potato Salad with BBQ Chickpeas
- Roasted Cauliflower Date Salad
- Garlic Sage Toasted Quinoa Salad
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Shredded Cauliflower and Squash Salad with Apple Butter Tahini Dressing
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 3–4 servings 1x
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Roasting
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This shredded cauliflower and squash salad is topped with crispy ginger chickpeas and drizzled with a creamy apple butter tahini dressing. A complete, fiber packed and meal.
Ingredients
Ingredients
Roasted Veggies
- Roasting spices: ground coriander, ginger, five spice, white pepper
- 1, 15 oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 honeynut squash, seeds removed and thinly sliced
- 1 head of cauliflower, cut into 1 inch florets then sliced into 1/4 inch slabs
- 1/2 medium red onion, thinly sliced
- Avocado oil
- Kosher salt
Massaged Kale
- 6 leaves of lacinato kale, stems removed and thinly sliced
- Juice of half a lemon
- 1 tsp avocado oil
- 1/4 cup cilantro or parsley
- 1 tbsp sesame seeds, optional
Apple Butter Tahini Dressing
- 1/4 cup tahini
- 2 tbsp apple butter
- 1 clove garlic, grated
- Juice of half a lemon
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp dijon mustard
- 1–2 tsp maple syrup, optional
- 3–4 tbsp water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425F then prepare 3 baking trays with parchment paper.
- Dry the chickpeas in a kitchen towel then place on a baking tray with 1 tbsp oil and 1/2 a tsp each of coriander and ginger with a pinch of salt and white pepper. Toss to coat then spread out in an even layer and bake for 20 minutes. Give the chickpeas a toss then roast for another 10 minutes then allow to completely cool.
- To the second tray add the squash with 1/2 tsp each of coriander and five spice with a pinch of salt. Drizzle the squash with about 1 tbsp of oil then toss to coat, spreading the squash out evenly into a single layer. Roast for 15 minutes, flip then roast for an extra 5 minutes.
- Cut the cauliflower into 1 inch florets or thinly slice the florets into 1/4 inch slabs. Place on the last baking tray with the onion, 1 tsp coriander and 1/2 tsp each ginger and garlic with a generous pinch of salt. Drizzle the tray with 1 1/2 tbsp oil then toss to coat (use additional oil as needed). Spread everything out into a single layer then roast for 20 minutes on the bottom rack. Flip then bake for an extra 10 minutes until charred around the edges.
- While the veggies roast, add the kale to a bowl with the oil, lemon and a pinch of salt. Use clean hands to massage everything into the kale until it softens and turns a brighter green.
- For the dressing, just add the tahini, apple butter, garlic, lemon, ginger, mustard, syrup, 1/4 tsp of salt and water. Whisk together until smooth, adding water as needed if you’d like your dressing thinner. Taste and adjust salt as needed.
- Now assemble, transfer the squash to the tray of roasted cauliflower then top with the kale, cilantro, and sesame seeds then toss everything together with tongs. Serve the roasted veggie salad in a bowl or wrap and top with the chickpeas and a generous drizzle of the dressing.
Notes
Make this faster. What will take the longest is chopping by hand. However, you can end up using a mandoline or a veggie chopper to chop up your veggies with more efficiency. You can also choose to use pre-cut veggies like cauliflower florets and cubed squash to eliminate the need to chop all together.
Cook it faster. Use the largest baking trays you have to fit as many veggies on your tray without overcrowding. This will allow everything to bake evenly, but quickly at the same time. Normally, I bake chickpeas on a smaller tray so I can fit it on the same rack as a different veggie I’m roasting (in this case I was able to fit it on the same rack as the squash that way I could roast all 3 trays at once. If you are unable to fit everything in the oven, feel free to roast your chickpeas in an airfryer if you have one available or start roasting the chickpeas first while you cut up your veggies.
Adjust the sweetener. Apple butter is sweet (sometimes a little tangy depending on the apples used to make it). Feel free to adjust the amount of sweetener you add based on the natural sweetness of your apple butter.
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