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Butternut Squash Orzo Spinach Salad With Candied Bacon | www.twoadorablelabs.com

Butternut Squash Orzo Spinach Salad With Candied Bacon

Sweet and tangy, colorful, healthy, and delicious. Perfect for all year round and any holiday!
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Course: Salad
Cuisine: American, Mediterranean
Keyword: Butternut squash, orzo, spinach, candied bacon, balsamic vinaigrette, feta cheese
Servings: 8
Author: Two Adorable Labs

Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 3 cups butternut squash I used almost 3 1/2 cups
  • 1 tsp paprika I used smoked paprika
  • 1/4 tsp cinnamon
  • 8 slices bacon I used thick cut
  • 2 tsp maple syrup I used pure maple syrup by Private Selection
  • 1 box orzo
  • 1/2 cup pine nuts
  • 1/2 cup broken feta cheese pieces
  • 1 bag baby spinach leaves
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar Add to your liking

Balsamic Vinaigrette

  • 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 cloves fresh garlic, minced
  • 1 tbsp thyme
  • 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
  • 1 1/2 tbsp fig preserve I used Bonnie Maman from Kroger
  • 1/2 tbsp honey
  • 1/2 tbsp pure maple syrup
  • 1 pinch chili flakes
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Bake Squash and 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.

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.

Balsamic Vinaigrette

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

Create 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.

Notes

You can serve with bread, crackers, chips, or create your own chips like I did.  Cut up a tortilla into strips, lightly fry in olive oil, toss with himalayan pink salt.  Let cool on a napkin and serve.