Roasted Butternut Squash Salad with Gigante Bean, Beets & Kale
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This roasted butternut squash salad, with creamy gigante beans, glistening ruby-red beets, and curly kale, always raises a few curious eyebrows when I set it on the table.
I have served this salad at countless dinner gatherings, alongside both Armenian and Italian menus, and it never fails to impress. It’s hearty enough to stand on its own as a dinner salad, yet handsome enough for a holiday table.
A roasted butternut squash salad wins its place on an autumn table. The squash comes out of the oven sweet and caramel-edged, the beets bring their deep, earthy red, and the gigante beans add a soft, buttery center. The beans I reach for most often come from Goris, in southern Armenia, where they grow lavender-purple and freckled with brown. A light white balsamic vinaigrette pulls everything together without hiding any of it.
Menu Suggestion: Make It a Meal
This salad sits just as comfortably at an Italian table as an Armenian one. Here’s how I build a full menu around it either way.
Table of Contents
A Few Things Worth Knowing
The colors alone make it striking. Speckles of deep orange squash, jewel-toned beets, and hearty giant beans nestled among dark green kale. It looks rustic and playful, almost casually assembled.
Your Essential Grocery List and Ingredient Notes
Optional Substitutions and Customization
Special tools you’ll need
Estimated Time
Recipe Steps at a Glance
Game Plan: What to Make Ahead
Almost every part of this salad can be cooked ahead, which is what makes it so easy to bring to a gathering. I split the work into short sessions, so the day itself is only tossing and serving.
Step-by-step: How to Make Roasted Butternut Squash Salad
Step 1: Roast the squash and toast the pepitas
Peel and cube the butternut squash. Toss it with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and a pinch of salt, then roast in a 400°F (200°C) oven until tender and caramelized at the edges, about 20 to 30 minutes. While it roasts, toast the pepitas in a dry skillet for 3 to 5 minutes, until they puff, pop, and turn golden.
Step 2: Cook the beans
If you’re using dried beans, soak them overnight in water with about 1 teaspoon of baking soda per cup. Rinse, then simmer in fresh water until creamy and tender, about an hour. Drain and let them cool. With canned beans, just drain and move on.
Step 3: Prepare the beets
Set the whole beets in an oven-safe dish with about an inch of water, cover with foil, and roast at 400°F (200°C) until fork-tender, about an hour. You can also boil them whole. Once cool, peel and cut them into bite-size cubes.
I like to cut them with a vegetable chopper, which gives me uniform pieces.
Step 4: Prepare the kale
Hold each stem in one hand and pull the leaves away in the opposite direction; they strip off in one motion. Tear or chop the leaves into thin ribbons.
I don’t massage the kale for this salad. Left as is, the curly leaves stay springy and hold up the beans and roasted vegetables.
Step 5: Combine and dress
Whisk 3 tablespoons of olive oil with the white balsamic vinegar and a pinch of salt. In a large bowl, combine the kale, beans, roasted squash, and beets, then drizzle the dressing over the top.
Step 6: Assemble the salad
Toss gently, lifting from the bottom of the bowl so the beets don’t stain everything pink. Scatter the toasted pepitas over the top and serve.
Storage and Make-Ahead Notes
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I make this salad ahead?
Yes, and I recommend it. The cooked beans, roasted squash, beets, and toasted pepitas all keep 3 to 5 days, each in its own container. On the day you serve, chop the kale, whisk the dressing, and toss everything together in about 15 minutes.
What are gigante beans and where do I find them?
Gigante beans are very large, creamy beans prized across the Mediterranean, especially in Greece, where they’re called gigantes. Look for them dried or jarred at Mediterranean and Greek markets, in well-stocked grocery stores, and online. The variety I use most often comes from the Goris region of Armenia.
Can I use canned beans instead of dried?
Yes. One can, drained, replaces the cup of cooked beans and saves you the overnight soak and the hour of simmering.
How do I keep beets from bleeding into the salad?
Store the cubed beets in their own container until you assemble, add them last, and toss gently just before serving. Dressing the salad at the last minute also keeps the colors distinct.
What can I use instead of butternut squash?
Pumpkin, delicata squash, sweet potato or yam, roasted carrots, or potatoes all work. Cut them into similar cubes and roast until tender and caramelized at the edges, checking early since each cooks at its own pace.
Are pumpkin seeds and pepitas the same thing?
Not quite. Pepitas are the green, hull-less seeds from certain pumpkin varieties, while the seeds you scoop from a carving pumpkin still have their white shells. For this salad, use raw pepitas toasted at home or unsalted roasted pepitas.
More Recipes to Try from Cafe Osharak
If this salad earned a place on your table, these share its spirit: generous, colorful, and happy to be made ahead.
Salads and Autumn Dishes for the Same Table
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Roasted Butternut Squash Salad with Gigante Beans
Ingredients
- 1 small butternut squash
- 1 tablespoon olive oil for roasting the squash
- 2 medium beets
- 1 cup cooked gigante beans or 1 can, drained
- 1 bunch kale 6-7 sprigs
- ¼ cup pumpkin seeds or unsalted roasted pepitas
- 3 tablespoons olive oil For salad
- 1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar
- salt to taste
- 1 teaspoon baking soda per cup of dried beans
Instructions
Prepare the vegetables
- Place the cubed butternut squash on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, season with salt, and roast in a 400°F (200°C) oven until lightly caramelized (20 -30 minutes).
- Place the whole beets in a oven safe dish with an inch of water, cover with foil and roast in a 400°F (200°C) oven until tender (about 1 hour). Let cool, then peel and cut the beets into bite-size pieces.
Cook the beans (if using dried)
- Soak overnight in water with about 1 teaspoon of baking soda per cup of beans. Rinse, then simmer in fresh water until tender, about 1 hour. Drain and cool. (Skip if using canned beans.)
Prepare the kale
- Strip the leaves from the stems and chop them into thin ribbons.
Make the dressing
- In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, white balsamic vinegar, and salt.
Toast the pumpkin seeds
- Place the pumpkin seeds in a dry skillet and toast for 3-5 minutes until they begin to puff up, pop, and turn golden brown.
Assemble the salad
- In a large bowl, combine the kale, beans, roasted squash, and beets. Toss gently.
Finish and serve
- Drizzle with dressing and toss lightly. Top with roasted pumpkin seeds and serve.
