Quinoa Avocado Salad
on Aug 03, 2018, Updated Jul 18, 2024
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This quinoa avocado salad features fresh greens, quinoa, creamy avocado, roasted beets, squash and chickpeas and a simple, maple dijon vinaigrette to bring it all together.
Alright so if it’s no boring salads allowed, we’re doing alright with this quinoa avocado salad bowl. On top of mixed greens you’ll find baked acorn squash, roasted beets, roasted chickpeas and a sweet and tangy maple dijon vinaigrette to finish it all off.
There’s a bit of prep work to this one but it can all be done ahead of time as part of your weekly food prep. To make the ingredients ahead of time, baked the squash, roast the beets and chickpeas (they can all go in the oven at the same time if needed) and make the salad dressing.
Then all you need to do at game time is assemble the salad and dig in. I used mixed field greens for the base of the salad but you could also do kale, spinach or arugula.
To recap, you’ll be needing:
- Greens for the base. I used mixed field greens but any greens, kale, spinach, aruglua or any mixture of those works.
- Quinoa. To give this salad a little more substance and make it a meal with staying power, it has quinoa for added protein and complex carbohydrates. Read more about quinoa in my guide to whole grains.
- Roasted squash. I used acorn squash but butternut, kabocha or any other squash also works.
- Roasted beets. Who doesn’t love roasted beets? They’re so good they taste like candy! I sliced my beets for roasting but you could also do whole roasted beets like I did in this salad.
- Roasted chickpeas. I used homemade, which I explain how to make in the recipe below, but you can go with store-bought in a pinch.
- Avocado. You’ll need 1/4-1/2 ripe avocado per serving. I used half a small avocado, or 50 grams, in each salad. Look for an avocado that has just a slightly give when you squeeze it. You want it to be ripe but firm.
- Maple dijon vinaigrette. For the dressing, you’ll need water, red or white wine or balsamic vinegar, pure maple syrup (or stevia), garlic powder, dijon mustard, lemon, salt and pepper. Just whisk all that together in a bowl and that’s the dressing. You can also make it creamy by blending in 1/2 a container of soft tofu.
Cooking Fluffy Quinoa
Here’s the method I use to cook perfect, fluffy quinoa, every time.
- Rinse the quinoa well.
- Bring the water to a boil, using a 2:1 ratio of water to quinoa.
- Add the quinoa, cover and reduce to a light simmer.
- Cook for 15 minutes.
- Remove from heat and let stand for 5 minutes without removing the lid.
- Fluff with a fork and serve.
More Healthy Salads
Loving the looks of this quinoa avocado salad? You might like these ones too:
Mediterranean Farro Salad Bowls // Cauliflower Quinoa Tabouli Bowls // Mediterranean Quinoa Bowls with Tofu Feta // Vegan Roasted Beet Salad with Marinated Chickpeas // Roasted Potato Kale Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette // Butternut Squash Quinoa Salad
Did you try this recipe? I’d love to hear about it! Scroll down to the comment section to leave a star rating and review.
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Quinoa Avocado Salad with Dijon Vinaigrette
Ingredients
For the Roasted Chickpeas
- 1 19 oz can chickpeas, drained, rinsed and dried
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- pinch of black pepper
For the Dijon Vinaigrette
- 4 tbsp dijon mustard
- 3 tbsp white wine vinegar, red wine vinegar or balsamic
- 2 tbsp pure maple syrup
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
For the Salad
- 4 small or two large beets, peeled and sliced into half-moons
- 1 acorn squash
- 6 cups mixed greens of choice, baby spinach, baby kale, arugula, salad greens, etc.
- 2 avocado
- 2 cups cooked quinoa
Instructions
- To Make the Roasted Chickpeas. Pre-heat the oven to 350 F. Prepare the chickpeas by draining them and giving them a thorough rinse. Place them on a dish towel, fold it over them and roll them around until they’re near completely dry. The drier, the better. If some of the skins come off that’s good, you can pick those out. For the crispiest chickpeas, remove all the skins. Place the dried chickpeas on a baking tray and drizzle them with the olive oil, rolling around so they’re all coated. Roast for 30-40 minutes until golden brown. When they come out of the oven add the spices and roll around to coat. They will get crispy as they cool.
- To Make the Roasted Beets. Peel and slice beets. Toss with 1 tsp of olive or avocado oil and roast at 400 degrees for 30-45 minutes until tender.
- To Make the Roasted Squash. Cut the acorn squash in half, scoop out the seeds and cut into slices. Roast for 20-25 minutes until fork tender. Let them cool briefly then pull the peel away from the flesh and cut the squash into cubes.
- To Make the Dressing. Add all the ingredients to a small dish and whisk or shake in a container until smooth and creamy.
- To Make the Salad. Start with a big handful of greens for each of 4 servings, then top each with half a chopped avocado, roasted beet, roasted squash, roasted chickpeas, quinoa and drizzle of dressing.
This is a good one! Excellent combo of flavors and textures.
ALL of your salads are AMAZING! I’ve made this one, the fall harvest salad, and your glorious brown rice peanut dressing salad…just this WEEK! I don’t even LIKE salads, but after a weekend packed with holiday parties, all we wanted was VEGETABLES. I love these because they are so DENSE and filling but good for you. Keep posting salad recipes PLEASE!
This makes me so happy! Especially since salads are my favourite thing to create. I agree, I’m needing extra salads with all the holiday parties and treats!! This is such a good one too. I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Beautiful! Thanks for the recipe 🙂
I currently have TONS of beets from my garden…I made roasted beets this week for a side dish, but need to make them again ASAP for this recipe! 🙂
Ooh lucky! I wish I had beets from the garden! Hope you enjoy the recipe!