Warm Spinach Salad with Quinoa and Sweet Potato

Salad, but make it cozy. This simple spinach salad wilts ever so slightly thanks to freshly cooked quinoa and roasted sweet potatoes, which gives it just the right amount of warmth while still feeling bright and fresh. Crumbled feta and toasted pepitas add texture and depth for a hearty salad that's perfect as a vegetarian main course.

We use a similar version of this maple dijon dressing in recipes like our spinach apple salad and chicken arugula salad. It's a fairly basic vinaigrette, with a nice punch of sweetness from a drizzle of pure maple syrup (although you can skip the syrup if you like).

Scroll to the recipe card below for a full ingredients list and exact quantities.

This salad is pretty straightforward, but we want to highlight a few things:

• Sweet potatoes are roasted with a touch of cumin and smoked paprika. Swap the sweet potatoes for diced butternut squash or sliced acorn squash if you like (you may need to adjust the cook time!)
• We used tri-colored quinoa here, but use whatever you have! Farro, barley, or brown rice also work well in this recipe.
• Toasted pepitas (sometimes labeled as shelled pumpkin seeds) add a nice crunch to this salad. You can skip the toasting step if you're short on time. If you don't have pepitas on hand, use walnuts, pecans, sliced almonds, or sunflower seeds. Learn more: Pepitas and how they're used.
• Baby spinach leaves are the star of the show here! If you don't like large bites of spinach, give the leaves a rough chop before you toss the salad together.

Step by step photos

Prep the warm components

Start by cooking the quinoa in a small saucepan according to package directions (we typically use a ratio of 1 part quinoa to 2 parts water). While the quinoa cooks, prep the rest of the salad ingredients!

Line a sheet pan with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat. Toss diced sweet potato with olive oil, salt, a few turns of fresh cracked black pepper, paprika, and cumin until the potato pieces are evenly coated with spices.

Spread the sweet potatoes out into an even layer (Image 4, above), then roast in a preheated oven until they are lightly browned and cooked through (5). Fully cooked sweet potatoes should be easily pierced with a fork.

Toast pepitas in a skillet over medium-low heat until they are very lightly browned and fragrant (Image 6, above). You won't notice a dramatic color difference when toasting pepitas: Think of this step more like gently warming them up until they give off a faint, nutty aroma.

Pro Tip: You can skip this step if you're short on time, but a quick, light toasting brings out so much flavor in pepitas (or any nuts and seeds you add to your favorite salads!)

Make the dressing

Whisk dijon mustard, apple cider vinegar, maple syrup, and olive oil together in a small measuring cup with a pinch of kosher salt. You can also shake this dressing together in a mason jar with a tight-fitting lid if you don't feel like whisking it by hand!

Pro Tip: As written, this recipe makes just enough dressing for a lightly-dressed salad. If you like heavier dressing, you may want to double the maple dijon vinaigrette! Store any extra salad dressing in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.

Assemble

Add cooked quinoa, roasted sweet potato, toasted pepitas, baby spinach, and feta to a large bowl. Drizzle the dressing over everything, then toss to combine (Images 9-10, above). The heat from the quinoa and sweet potatoes will wilt the spinach slightly as you mix, resulting in a warm salad that's perfect for a cozy-but-colorful dinner.

You may not need all the dressing! Start slow, and add more as needed. Save any extra dressing for salads later in the week.

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