This is the perfect salad to transition from summer to fall and a great staple for your weekly rotation. Delicata squash is only available for a few months each fall, and one of our favorite squashes to cook with because you can keep the skin on! The key ingredients here are the kale and salad dressing. Feel free to mix and match what you have in your refrigerator so that this is always a quick option for a healthy weeknight dinner. We love kale as the base for a salad because it holds up well to starchy ingredients like the squash. It also can stay dressed for much longer than other leafy greens, which means that if you have extra salad it will be great the next day for lunch or even as a recipe to prep over the weekend for lunches throughout the week. 

Kale Salad: Fall Edition
Makes: 4 side salads

Ingredients For The Dressing:

• ⅓ cup avocado oil
• 1 tbs dijon mustard
• 1 tbs balsamic glaze
• 1 clove garlic 
• Salt and pepper to taste

Ingredients For The Salad:

• 6 cups chopped kale, stems removed
• 1 delicata squash
• 2 tbs olive oil 
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 6 baby bell peppers (or 1 large bell pepper), seeds removed 
• ¼ of a red onion 
• 2 tbs roasted and salted pumpkin seeds 
• ¼ cup cotija cheese or queso fresco, crumbled

Directions For the Dressing: 

1. Mince the garlic. Blend all of the ingredients together until combined.
2. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Directions For the Salad:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Remove the ends of the delicata squash and cut the squash in half, lengthwise and remove the seeds using a spoon. Cut the squash into bite sized pieces and place on a cookie sheet.
3. Drizzle the squash with 1 tbs olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place in oven and bake for 12 – 15 minutes or until squash is caramelized and cooked through .
4. While the squash is baking, slice the onion and peppers into thin strips.
5. In a large bowl, add the remaining olive oil and the kale. Using your hands, massage the kale with the olive oil to help break down the kale into a softer texture. 
6. Toss the kale, delicata squash, peppers, onion and pumpkin seeds together with the dressing. 
7. To serve, sprinkle the salad with the cotija cheese and serve cold to room temperature.