Fall Harvest Salad

This Fall Harvest Salad is full of autumn flavors from roasted butternut squash, toasty pecans, crispy bacon, apples, dried cranberries, and a maple vinaigrette that’s so good you could drink it. Inspired by a classic cobb salad, can be served as an entrée or smaller serving as a side salad.

When it comes to a hearty salad, my first thought is always a cobb. It has hardboiled eggs, tomatoes, bacon, chicken, the list of delicious flavors goes on and on. With all the amazing vegetables and flavors of the fall, I was inspired to create an autumn version of this salad. It’s perfect to meal prep for a busy week or serve as a starter course for a dinner party or holiday meal. It’s a show-stopping recipe.

I changed most everything about the chicken cobb salad for my fall, or “harvest” version. Of course I kept the good stuff, like the bacon, but revamped the rest. Instead of crisp flavorless lettuce (not hating—there’s a time and place) I instead use more nutrient-dense kale and mixed salad greens. Not only are they healthier, but I find they pair better with the autumn flavors of the dish.

In keeping with tradition, this salad does still feature roasted chicken and bacon—but frankly it would also be delicious with leftover turkey from Thanksgiving, which is why I’ve listed it as an option in the ingredient list.

The toppings also include roasted butternut squash, toasted pecans (toasted is a MUST), sweet red apple, dried cranberries, and finally, nutty strips of Manchego cheese. Ahh this is one of my favorite salads!

Why You’ll Love this Recipe

• It’s a hearty harvest salad that’s almost like a bowl. This salad has so many delicious fall ingredients as toppings, like apples, bacon, and pecans, it’s like a bowl meets a salad. This makes it appropriate to be an entrée salad any night of the week.
• Customize with your favorite fall ingredients. Cube up your favorite squash or root vegetables and roast them to top the salad. Swap the pecans for walnuts. Use chopped dried figs instead of cranberries. Have fun with this recipe using in-season fall produce!
• A meal prep dream recipe. You heard it loud and clear, this recipe is great for prepping ahead whether that’s for weekday lunches or a dinner party on the weekend. Chop the toppings and store them in separate containers. Assemble the salad right before serving and enjoy!

What is a Classic Cobb Salad?

The classic cobb salad is an American main-dish salad packed with a variety of flavors, textures and protein. The base of the salad most often consists of chopped crisp lettuce such as romaine or iceberg, and is topped with tomato, crispy bacon, roasted chicken, hard-boiled eggs, avocado, blue cheese, chives and a basic red wine vinaigrette.

Ingredients

For the Salad:

• Butternut squash: adds creamy, sweet flavor to the dish. You’ll need 4 cups cubed squash. Sweet potato can also be used.
• Extra-virgin olive oil: Use a quality, flavorful olive oil here.
• Bacon: You’ll need 4 strips of bacon (though more is always welcome). In the recipe I instruct you cook it on the stove top. Though for less mess, and since the oven is already on, you can cook it on a baking sheet and crumble it once cooked and cooled.
• Chopped kale: I like to use Lacinato kale (also called Dinosaur kale) for the best texture.
• Mixed spring greens: you’ll need about 6 cups, or a 5-ounce container.
• Cooked shredded turkey or chicken: We have a great pan-seared chicken you can use. Leftover turkey from Thanksgiving is also delicious on this salad. Rotisserie chicken is a perfect shortcut solution as well.
• Honeycrisp or Jonathan apple: any sweet red apple will work here. Or use Granny Smith for a bright, tart crunch.
• Pecans: toasted pecans add tons of flavor. Toast them in the already-heated oven for about 8 minutes or until fragrant.
• Dried cranberries: these add a pop of sweetness and color. Golden raisins, dried figs and diced dried apricots are all great options.
• Manchego or Parmesan: either are delicious here. I love the nuttiness of Manchego but Parmesan adds a nice saltiness.

For the Maple Vinaigrette:

• Extra-virgin olive oil: the base of any good salad dressing. Be sure to use a high quality olive oil.
• White balsamic vinegar: this is the secret ingredient that makes this dressing so addicting. It’s tangy with a hint of citrusy sweetness all in one bite.
• Shallot: adds a hint of onion flavor. It’s bit sweeter in flavor than a classic red onion.
• Pure maple syrup: balances the tartness of the vinegar to balance the dressing.
• Dijon mustard: emulsifies all of the ingredients to make a uniform dressing.

How to Make Fall Harvest Salad

1. Heat oven to 400ºF.
2. Place squash on a sheet pan and drizzle with olive oil, ½ salt, and ¼ pepper; toss to coat. Arrange the squash in a single layer and roast until squash is tender, 25–30 minutes, tossing halfway through.
3. Meanwhile, cook the bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crispy. Transfer bacon to a paper towel-lined plate and discard drippings; chop bacon.
4. Add kale to a large serving bowl or platter and briefly massage and squeeze kale to soften. Add greens and toss to combine. 
5. Arrange roasted squash, chopped bacon, shredded turkey or chicken, apple, pecans, cranberries, and Manchego over top. 
6. Make the maple vinaigrette. Whisk together oil, vinegar, shallot, maple syrup and Dijon in a small liquid measuring cup. Season with salt and pepper to taste. 
7. Drizzle vinaigrette over salad and toss to combine; season salad with salt and pepper to taste. 

Variations on the Harvest Salad

We love to make all different variations on this fall cobb salad recipe, it’s just so delicious! here are some of our favorite substitutes:

• Swap some of the oil in the vinaigrette for a few tablespoons of warm bacon drippings.
• Swap the butternut squash for acorn squash, pumpkin or sweet potato. 
• Swap the pecans for pumpkin seeds. 
• Swap the chicken or turkey for white beans or lentils to make it vegetarian (leave the bacon out).
• Make it more “fall” and use apple cider vinegar for the vinaigrette (which would make a delicious cider vinaigrette with the maple syrup!)

Storage & Meal Prep

If you’re storing this harvest salad as leftovers after you have mixed it all together, place in an airtight container in the fridge and consume after one day. It will become soggy if you let it sit any further.

If you’re meal prepping the salad, prepare every ingredient separately and place in it’s own individual container. Assemble the salad right before serving.

What to Serve with This Fall Harvest Salad

This fall salad is so hearty on it’s own with all of the toppings, we recommend pairing it with a slice of delicious bread.

• This salad is a great when paired with our Healthy Skillet Cornbread.
• Round out the meal with homemade Garlic Naan Bread.
• Any kind of dinner roll is great with this salad, try our Milk Bread Rolls, Sweet Potato Dinner Rolls or Kaiser Rolls.
• Keep things gluten-free and try our fiber-rich Grain-Free Nut & Seed Bread.

More Autumn-inspired Salads

• Apple Walnut Salad
• Pear and Arugula Salad
• Kale Apple Salad

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