Quinoa Lentil Salad with Hot Honey Vinaigrette

wooden salad bowl of quinoa lentil salad with tongs laying on top

Quinoa Lentil Salad with Hot Honey Vinaigrette

Pack in the plant-based protein and fiber with this flavorful Quinoa Lentil Salad! This hearty salad is bursting with kale, roasted sweet potato, green lentils, quinoa and goat cheese. It's then tossed in a delicious hot honey vinaigrette for a dinner that's gluten free, vegetarian and so satisfying. It even holds up great for meal prep!

Servings people

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 30

Total Time 45

Equipment

cutting board
knife
medium pot with lid
fine mesh strainer
baking sheet
large salad bowl with tongs
small jar or bowl

Ingredients

For the Quinoa Lentil Salad:

1 cup uncooked green lentils rinsed
½ cup uncooked quinoa rinsed
3 cups broth of choice (I like chicken bone broth)
1 medium sweet potato (12-16oz), cut into ¾" cubes
½ tbsp avocado oil or olive oil
kosher salt to taste
6-8 oz chopped curly kale (about 6-8 cups)
2 small shallots (or 1 large), thinly sliced
4 oz goat cheese crumbled (plain or garlic herb flavor)
2 tbsp pumpkin seeds (pepitas)

For the Hot Honey Vinaigrette:

¼ cup olive oil
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp hot honey (can sub normal honey)
juice from ½ lemon
2 small garlic cloves minced
1 tsp dijon mustard
kosher salt to taste

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 425F. Add cubed sweet potato to a baking sheet and drizzle with oil and kosher salt. Toss to combine. Then, spread out evenly so that there's no overlap. Transfer baking sheet to the oven and roast for 15 minutes, or until fork tender. Let cool.
1 medium sweet potato, ½ tbsp avocado oil, kosher salt
Add rinsed quinoa, green lentils and broth to a medium-sized pot. Bring it to a boil. Once boiling, cover the pot with a lid and reduce the heat to low. Simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until lentils are tender. Turn off the heat but keep the lid on, and allow it to steam for 10 more minutes. There will likely be a bit of excess liquid - drain that off in a fine mesh strainer and rinse with cold water to cool everything down.
1 cup uncooked green lentils, ½ cup uncooked quinoa, 3 cups broth of choice
In a small jar or bowl, add all of the hot honey vinaigrette ingredients and stir or shake until combined and emulsified. If you want to make it spicier, feel free to add some red pepper flakes.
¼ cup olive oil, 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar, juice from ½ lemon, 2 tbsp hot honey, 2 small garlic cloves, 1 tsp dijon mustard, kosher salt
Add chopped kale to a large salad bowl. Drizzle about half of the hot honey vinaigrette over top and then use your hands to liberally massage it into the kale.
Next, add sliced shallots, cooked and cooled quinoa and lentils, roasted sweet potato, crumbled goat cheese and pumpkin seeds to the salad bowl. Drizzle the remaining hot honey vinaigrette over top and toss to combine. Enjoy!
6-8 oz chopped curly kale, 2 small shallots, 4 oz goat cheese, 2 tbsp pumpkin seeds

Video

Notes

NUTRITION INFO: The nutrition info listed below is an estimate per serving, assuming that you use chicken bone broth to cook the quinoa and lentils in.

Calories: 413kcal

Course: Dinner, Main Course, Salad

Cuisine: American

Diet: Gluten Free, Vegetarian

Keyword: Fall Recipe, Gluten Free, Goat Cheese, Hot Honey, Kale, Lentils, Quinoa, Salad, Salad Dressing, Sweet Potato, Vegetarian

Nutrition