A delicious blend of cinnamon and spices, this Butternut Squash Freekeh Salad with cranberries, feta, and pecans is so good! With five grams of fiber and five grams of protein, this makes fore a great vegetarian dish!
You knew it was only a matter of time before freekeh came back, right? I can’t help but want to use it all the time. I am just in love with the texture. Not to mention the awesome nutritional value! Compared to the ever-so-popular ancient grain quinoa, freekeh has a touch more protein and twice the fiber! Plus it is low on the glycemic index, meaning it can be great for stabilizing blood sugar.
Today we’re pairing some butternut squash with the freekeh, and for that we’re also busting out The Inspiralizer. It makes prepping butternut squash a BREEZE.
How many of you have tried cutting into a hearty squash like butternut and almost cut your hand off? Or you sit there with the knife stuck in the squash… possssibly banging it on the counter, hoping for the best… CLEARLY not the safest thing to do. I would never do such a thing…
Thank freaking goodness for Ali’s Inspiralizer though! It literally takes seconds to prep this bad boy. After you’ve spiralized the squash you then just toss it with some oil and spices and bake for about 20 minutes, until soft. SUPER EASY.
And then we’re tossing the squash in with the freekeh, cranberries, pecans, and feta of course. I don’t know about you all, but I’m kind of obsessed with any combination of flavors like this. Feta + cranberries = love. Feta in general, really. Add in the crunchy texture of pecans and we’re just head over heels.
Love these FLAVORS.
Butternut Squash Freekeh Salad with cranberries, feta, and pecans
A delicious blend of cinnamon and spices, this Butternut Squash Freekeh Salad with cranberries, feta, and pecans is so good! A great vegetarian side dish.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup freekeh
- 2 cups water
- 1 medium butternut squash, cubed or spiralized
- 1/2 TBS olive oil
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ginger
- 1/4 tsp paprika
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1-2 TBS balsamic vinegar
- 1/2 cup feta, crumbled
- 1/3 cup toasted pecans, chopped or whole
- 1/3 cup dried cranberries
Instructions
- Place freekeh and water in medium saucepan on medium-high heat. Bring mixture to a boil, then cover and simmer for about 20 minutes, until water has evaporated.
- While freekeh is cooking, preheat oven to 375F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone mat.
- Prepare squash by removing skin and cutting into cubes, or cut ends evenly and place in spiralizer to make noodles (any blade will work). In large bowl, toss squash with olive oil, cinnamon, ginger, paprika, and salt. Spread onto prepared baking sheet and bake squash for 15-20 minutes, or until tender. Allow squash to cool slightly on pan.
- Once freekeh is done, drain any excess water and transfer to large bowl. Add balsamic vinegar to freekeh and stir.
- Add cooled squash to bowl of freekeh, toss in cranberries, feta, and pecans. Stir to combine and serve!
Recipe Notes
-Nutrition based on 6 servings
-Check out this video from Ali on how to spiralize your butternut squash. I use hers and LOVE it. If you're interested in purchasing, here is an amazon link: The Inspiralizer
Making this recipe? I would love to see it!
Tag @fitmittenkitchen and hashtag #fitmittenkitchen
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Okay, real quick… so we (finally) just finished the last season of Dexter on Netflix last night.
WTF. What. The. F. I mean REALLY? REALLY!?!?! Uggghhh I can’t even. Why? WHY!? They can bring back the show any day now. I would really like those rumors to become a reality… Now what are we going to do in the evenings? I asked my husband this, and I said we could do laundry but he shot that down real quick. Not that I really want to do laundry in place of watching Dexter… Maybe I’ll start reading more…
Okay, that is all. Go make this salad now.
Your turn
- Have you got your freekeh on yet?
- What is your current favorite show to watch on Netflix?
Happy Hump Day!
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This sounds so delicious and wintery and just YUM. Love the addition of the feta!
I have NOT gotten my freekeh on (I’ve eaten it just not made it myself) but now I think I will. I also haven’t spiralized B-squash (gangsta term for butternut squash) yet, aaand again, now I think I will. You’re such an inspo fo realz
lol spiralizing anything is just fun. You should do BELL PEPPERS. Crazy fast and awesome.
Inspo- I do what I can [ hair flip emoji ] XX
Yeah, agreed.. Just spiralize everything just for the heck of it! Good fun and entertaining! 🙂 I am loving the flavors in this. The feta, pecans and cranberries just set this dish off the charts! So delish!!!!!
Spiralizing has no boundaries 😀 Thanks so much Taylor!
I JUST bought freekeh because I’ve never had it and I’ve been wanting to try it. I love and hate when I finally finish a TV show.. it’s so bittersweet! That said, I’ve never seen Dexter so I can’t completely relate to your feelings hah
Oh can’t wait for you to try it, I love it. And I never thought I’d be into Dexter (cuz I’m a scaredy cat) but I was HOOKED.
Woah butternut noodles? Yes please! That’s the only thing I haven’t spirialized yet!
Oh you should totally try! It makes cooking it so quick and easy.
OMG Ashley that photo of the squash coming out of the spiralizer is so pretty!! i had squash last night, but it definitely wasn’t in as great of a recipe as this. Never tried freekah but clearly there are some awesome health benefits so i’ll have a look for it next time i go shopping!! i’ve heard great things from all the different blogs i read.
Well thanks! And yes, I really hope you can find it! If there is a good grocery store with bulk bins, maybe they’d have it in there?
Yes!!! Love all the flavors here! I’d obvs leave out the feta, but no worries, I have a vegan feta recipe 😉 I also have a spiralized butternut squash recipe on the blog so either A. great minds think alike, B. we both have no tolerance for cutting squash, or C. Both.
BOTH. lol. Intrigued by this vegan feta! You’ll have to share a recipe with it!!
I was in that Freekeh campaign from Sweat Pink and still have an entire bag…oopsies! Better get my freekeh on!! I LOVE feta in salads, and spiralized b. squash is PERF.
This is just BEAUTIFUL!! I love the colors! Looks so tasty, too 😉
I’ve already eaten. But this makes me hungry all over again. lol
I have yet to get my freekeh oh, but I will need to very soon. This looks amazing! Love the spiralized butternut noodles. I have had some close calls trying to cut one! Love all of the flavors and textures here!
I have almost cut my hand off more times than I can count while cooking. Seriously I such a hazard. I’ve never heard of freekeh. I’m so intrigued! This salad looks awesome. I like a little sweet in my salads so this is perfection for me!
Spiralized butternut squash? OH MY WORD! Looks amazing!
Yes it’s so great and bakes quickly! Thanks Annmarie 🙂
That looks super delish and colorful! I have some Freekeh I need to use up, and this looks like just the recipe to use!
Ha, you are so right about the knife stuck in the butternut squash!
Lately I have been really into all the house renovating shows…my poor hubby…I have all these ideas of what I want to do to a house!
Thanks for joining the link up!
I love finding new recipes to use up leftover ingredients. Thanks so much for stopping by Esther! 🙂