Autumn Butternut and Kale Salad with Maple Vinaigrette

It was a favorite at our Thanksgiving table. I made some changes. I roasted the butternut squash with olive oil, salt, pepper and sautéed garlic. For the dressing I added fresh squeezed lemon, olive oil, & substituted maple syrup with honey, since I don't care for maple syrup. I finished it with salt and pepper to taste. I tossed the spinach and kale mix I had with the dressing first and once the butternut squash cooled a bit, I tossed it in with Feta instead of parmesan. Don't toss the sake til right before serving for best results.

I did not like this recipe. The butternut squash was too mushy, and the kale ended up being way to wilted for a good salad. It also had too much red onion. The vinaigrette was delicious.

I have a confession to make...I have never had kale before making this recipe, and I loved it! We really enjoyed this salad. I did cut back the 1 cup of maple syrup down to just a drizzle (maybe 1-2 tablespoons at most). I can't help but think that the 1 cup is an error, as the squash would have been swimming in syrup had I used the full 1 cup. I ended up doubling the vinaigrette, because after making it as the recipe stated, it just didn't look like enough to coat the salad, and I'm glad I did. I would also slice the red onion a little thicker next time, as some of them burned before the squash was roasted. With these changes, this is a 5 star recipe, and one that I look forward to making again.