Looking for a healthy, delicious salad you’ll want to make all winter long? Make my Butternut Squash Farro Salad with dried cranberries, pumpkin seeds, pomegranate arils, spinach, and goat cheese!

I honestly could eat this every day. It’s the perfect combination of fantastic ingredients that are bursting with flavor. And it’s so easy to make!

I originally came up with this idea to eat as a chilled salad but we ended up first eating it slightly warm and it was utterly fantastic. The goat cheese gets all melty and irresistible, but it’s also fabulous chilled!

Want to make it a meal? Serve with my Perfect Grilled Chicken, Honey Garlic Baked Salmon, or Frying Pan Chicken.

Butternut Squash Farro Salad

16 oz (1 pound) butternut squash, cut into cubes
1 cup farro
1 tsp salt
2 handfuls baby spinach
2 oz goat cheese
1/4 cup dried cranberries
2 Tbsp raw pumpkin seeds
2 Tbsp Pomegranate arils
Apple cider vinaigrette, recipe follows

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toss cubed butternut squash with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Roast on a baking sheet for about 30 minutes or until fork-tender. Let cool. 
2. While the squash is roasting, start the farro*. Rinse farro in a fine mesh sieve under cold water, then add to a medium saucepan with 4 cups water and 1 teaspoon kosher salt. Simmer for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the farro is tender and chewy. Drain remaining water, then immediately add spinach to the pot and close the lid to wild the spinach. Let steam for a minute or two.
3. Combined farro and spinach with roasted butternut squash, dried cranberries, pumpkin seeds, goat cheese, dried cranberries, and pomegranate arils. Toss with about half the apple cider vinaigrette and refrigerate for at least 2-4 hours. Add more vinaigrette before serving if desired. 

Apple Cider Vinaigrette

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 Tbsp honey
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
Salt, pepper to taste