Autumn Harvest Salad with Maple Vinaigrette

For Maple Vinaigrette:

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/3 cup pure maple syrup

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

1 tsp. dijon mustard

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1/4 tsp. ground black pepper

For Autumn Harvest Salad:

2 large or 3 small delicata squash

2 Tbsp. avocado oil

1 tsp. kosher salt

1/4 tsp. black pepper

2 medium-sized apples

1/2 cup pecans

1/4 cup pepitas (pumpkin seeds)

1/2 cup dried cranberries

2 lbs. mixed salad greens

1. Start by roasting the delicata squash. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees F. Cut the squash in half lengthwise, remove seeds, and chop into bite-sized pieces. Place squash pieces on a parchment-lined baking sheet, toss with avocado oil, salt, and pepper. Roast in the oven for 45 minutes, until tender and caramelized. Remove from oven and set aside to cool a little.
2. While squash is roasting, toast pecans and pepitas. Place nuts and seeds in a small frying pan on the stove over medium heat, and toast until just turning color, about 6-7 minutes. Remove from heat, and transfer nuts and seeds to a plate to cool.
3. While squash and toasted nut-seed mixture is cooling, make the vinaigrette. Place all vinaigrette ingredients into a small mixing bowl and whisk, or in a pint-sized Mason jar and shake, to combine. Set aside.
4. Prepare other salad components. Wash and dry salad greens, and place in a large bowl. Toss greens with 1/3 of the vinaigrette to dress them lightly.
5. Wash apples, remove cores, and chop into medium-dice. Add diced apples to bowl with salad greens. Scatter dried cranberries on top of greens and apples.
6. Once nut-seed mixture is fully cooled, and squash is still slightly warm, add half of the nuts and seeds and all of the roasted squash to the rest of the salad ingredients in the bowl. Pour an additional 1/3 of the vinaigrette over the salad, and toss lightly to coat ingredients.
7. Serve salad with extra toasted nut-seed mixture and vinaigrette on the side (optional - for the people who like extra crunch or extra dressing!). To make this a meal, serve the salad with a protein such as grilled chicken, salmon, or tempeh, and/or with cooked whole grains such as wild rice or barley.