Happy Wednesday everyone!  This colorful, healthy, delicious Butternut Squash Orzo Spinach Salad With Candied Bacon and a sprinkle of fresh feta cheese is a fall party favorite.  But honestly, you can enjoy this salad all year long!  I first saw this on Half Baked Harvest but you know me…I made some changes to the recipe and here we are!  It’s one of Mr. TAL’s favorites.  I always ask him if a recipe is blog-worthy or cookbook-worthy and he said both!  So you might just see this again :-).  The dressing is a combination of sweet and tangy and is pretty much my favorite homemade dressing I’ve made this year!

I ran to Big Lots and grabbed this cute pumpkin blanket (similar) and spider placemats (sold out) to go along with items I already had.  But once I was done, I just wasn’t happy.  I had to make another trip to pick up a few more things.  I found the garland (similar) at JoAnn Fabrics and my black and white witch at TJMaxx.  If you want to check out last year’s Witch and Skull table, you can find it here on the blog.  

To add a little pizzaz, I gave each place setting a jar of flavored honey cream spread from Bumbleberry Farms in flavors Lemon Vanilla, Seasalt Caramel, Sweet Maple, and Dark Chocolate.  If you are not familiar with Bumblerry Farms, it was started in 2011 by Karen Sandusky Mosholder eventually retired and gave it to her son Jon in 2023.  Jon, a deaf entrepreneur, has proudly taken to heart the Bumbleberry Farms mission to Spread a Little Sweetness, by empowering deaf individuals through the company’s hiring and sourcing practices, as well as, serving on boards that advance the lives of those in the deaf community.

I first learned about this company in the online newspaper “TheNextPittsburgh” and was intrigued by their story.  I am pleasantly surprised at how delicious their cream spreads are.  They even have recipes on their website to make using their products.

How to make the butternut squash and candied bacon:

1.  Cut butternut squash into cubes to make approximately 3 cups.  Toss with smoked paprika, cinnamon, maple syrup, and olive oil.  
2.  Cut 8 slices of bacon (I used thick cut) into squares and toss in some brown sugar.  
3.  On a sheet pan, add squash on one side and bacon on the other.
4.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees and bake for approximately 15 minutes or until bacon is crispy and squash is tender.  Remove from oven and let sit at room temperature.  Drain the bacon on a towel before adding to your salad.

How to make orzo and roasted pine nuts:

1.  While cooking bacon and squash, boil water, add a pinch of salt, and orzo, and boil until al dente.  Drain and let sit.
2.  In a small cast iron skillet, drizzle some olive oil into the pan to medium temperature.  Toss in pine nuts until they start to turn a medium brown and remove from heat.  The heat will intensify the aroma of the pine nuts.

How to make balsamic vinaigrette:

1.  Combine olive oil, fresh garlic, balsamic vinegar, fig preserves, honey, maple syrup, salt, black pepper, and chili flakes and shake well.

How to create your Butternut Squash Orzo Spinach with Candied Bacon Salad:

1.  Using your favorite dish, large plate, or bowl, add the spinach (I used almost a whole bag of baby leaf spinach), and layer on the bacon, squash, feta cheese, roasted pine nuts, and dressing.  This salad is warm but can be enjoyed cold the next day.  The dressing will last up to a week.  

2.  This salad is so versatile that you could add Honeycrisp apples, pears, walnuts, Kale, cranberries, or raisins if you would like.  

If you try this recipe, let me if you enjoyed it.  Check out Jake and Maggie below.  They helped me create this fall look by our man-door garage side!  Hope you like it.  Happy Fall, and wishing everyone a fun and safe Halloween.

Interested in more fall and Halloween posts, check them out here:

4 Fun Halloween Appetizers and Treat Recipes

Keeping Your Pet Safe During Halloween

Skull Pepperoni Rolls

Olive Spider Taco Dip

Mini Pup Pumpkin Pies