Next to puffy coats and fabulous boots, the best thing about this time of year are autumn vegetables. There is nothing I love more than roasting winter squash, pumpkins, parsnips paired with apples and figs. Because of their versatility, you can do so much from creating gourmet soups to simple salads.
I featured Colavita’s Grilled Pumpkin Salad with Autumn Vegetables in this week’s meal plan and had the opportunity to prepare for my family. It was delicious and a big hit. What really pushed the salad over the top was the creamy pumpkin dressing (but without the cream). You have to try it.
I made a few modifications for the 21 Day Sugar Detox protocol which was omitting the potatoes in the salad and substituting with parsnips. For the dressing I omitted the maple sugar. With the apple it was plenty sweet enough.
Instead of using extra virgin olive oil, Colavita sent me a bottle of Roasted Garlic Cooking Oil Blend which I used in the dressing and to roast the veggies. This stuff rocks!
Ingredients
- 1½ cups roasted pumpkin, sliced
- 1 bunch kale, coarsely chopped
- 6 small multi-colored potatoes (omit if Paleo or Sugar-Free)
- 1 apple, cubed
- 4 poached eggs, 1 per serving (optional)
- 2 tbsp Colavita Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- fresh parsley for garnish
- salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- Optional: roasted and spiced pumpkin seeds for topping
- Creamy pumpkin dressing
- ½ red apple, like Gala
- ½ cup pureed pumpkin
- ¼ cup water
- ¼ cup Colavita Classic Extra Virgin, Mediterranean or Greek Olive Oil
- 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon maple syrup (Omit if needed)
- pinch of sea salt
Instructions
- Heat your oven to 400°F. Cube the potatoes, and place them on a baking sheet. Drizzle them with Colavita Olive Oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place them in the oven and roast for about 15 minutes.
- Heat up a grill or grill pan. Slice the meat from a roasted pumpkin into strips. Brush with Colavita Extra Virgin Olive Oil and grill about 1 minute on each side. Remove from the heat and set aside on a plate.
- Rip the kale into bite-sized pieces and place in small, personal-sized bowls. Cube the apple and add it to the kale.
- Add in the roasted potatoes, a sprinkle of the spiced nuts and drizzle with the creamy pumpkin dressing.
- Top with a poached egg, some freshly chopped parsley, salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Place all the dressing ingredients in a blender or small food processor and blend until smooth.
Need more tips and tricks in the kitchen? Watch this quick video from Cooking Planit’s Executive Chef Emily Wilson:
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Roasted garlic cooking oil! Oh my that sounds good. This looks like the perfect fall side. Meandering on by via the Real Food Roundup. If you get a chance to stop by my blog sometime, I’d love it!