Herbed Panzanella Salad with Roasted Squash and Beets Gluten-Free Recipe

Make way for a new salad addiction. This adapted recipe by the author of Small Plates & Sweet Treats: My Family’s Journey to Gluten-Free Cooking and James Beard Award-nominated Cannelle et Vanille food blog is a wildly delicious meal in itself. We also recommend Aran’s cookbook by the same name. Find it here.

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Herbed Panzanella Salad with Roasted Squash and Beets

Panzanella salad is fantastic and totally doable for the gluten-free lifestyle if you use gluten-free bread — ideally a rustic loaf like a baguette or other country loaf. The beauty of the bread is it soaks up some of the dressing, providing a pleasing crunchy-squishy burst of flavor. Here it's accompanied by beets and squash to make it a hearty, satisfying salad or light, delicious meal. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Servings 4

Calories 475 kcal

Author Aran Goyoaga

Ingredients

For the Salad:

• 6 3/4-inch-thick slices rustic gluten-free bread, cubed
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 5 baby red beets, peeled and quartered
• 5 baby golden beets, peeled and quartered
• Kosher salt
• 1/2 medium kabocha, red kuri, or butternut squash, peeled, sliced into ½-inch-thick wedges, and seeded
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 medium Granny Smith or Golden Delicious apple, cored and thinly sliced
• 1 cup beet greens or other leafy greens
• 1/4 cup raw pumpkin seeds
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage leaves
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano leaves (optional)

For the Vinaigrette:

• 1 teaspoon grainy Dijon mustard
• 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
• 2 teaspoons pumpkin oil (optional)
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Make the salad: On a rimmed baking sheet, toss the bread with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Bake until dry, about 20 minutes.
2. Turn up the oven to 400°F. In a deep baking pan, toss the beets with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and a pinch of salt. Cover the pan with aluminum foil and bake until fork-tender, about 45 minutes.
3. On a rimmed baking sheet, toss the squash with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, a pinch of salt, and the red pepper flakes. Bake on the lower rack until fork-tender, about 20 minutes.

4. In a salad bowl, toss together the bread, beets, squash, apple, beet greens, pumpkin seeds, sage, thyme, and oregano.

5. Make the vinaigrette: Whisk together the mustard, vinegar, pumpkin oil, olive oil, and salt. Pour the vinaigrette over the warm salad, toss, let sit for 10 minutes so the bread absorbs the dressing, and serve.

Nutrition Facts

Herbed Panzanella Salad with Roasted Squash and Beets

Amount Per Serving

Calories 475 Calories from Fat 279

% Daily Value*

Fat 31g48%

Saturated Fat 5g31%

Trans Fat 0.02g

Polyunsaturated Fat 5g

Monounsaturated Fat 19g

Sodium 876mg38%

Potassium 896mg26%

Carbohydrates 45g15%

Fiber 8g33%

Sugar 15g17%

Protein 9g18%

Vitamin A 2298IU46%

Vitamin C 24mg29%

Calcium 134mg13%

Iron 4mg22%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Photography Aran Goyoaga

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