Name: Warm quinoa salad with sweet potatoes
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 2.5 lb sweet potatoes (4 medium-large sweet potatoes); 2 tablespoons olive oil; 1 pinch salt salt; 3/4 teaspoon garlic powder; 1 teaspoon smoked paprika; 1 1/2 teaspoon oregano; 1 cup quinoa; 2 cups vegetable broth (I use vegetable broth powder dissolved in water); 1 handful dried cranberries; 1 handful sunflower seeds; 5 oz arugula; 4 heaped tablespoons plain hummus; 1/3 cup water

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This warm quinoa salad is a dream for colder days when you're craving something wholesome without spending hours in the kitchen. With just 10 minutes of hands-on-prep, you'll have a cozy, nutritious meal topped off with my favorite 2-ingredient hummus dressing. But the magic happens in the details: perfectly seasoned sweet potatoes and quinoa cooked in vegetable broth make this salad both comforting and healthy.

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Why you'll love this recipe
Key ingredients and substitutions
Elo's tips
Step-by-step instructions
Storage and meal prep tips
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The recipe

Why you'll love this recipe

This warm quinoa salad is all about simplicity! A few well-prepared components, no unncessary fuss, and nothing you can't easily find at the store.
The hummus dressing is one of my best-kept secrets when you don't want to bother making a creamy dressing from scratch. Just thin out hummus with water, or jazz it with a little mustard and lemon juice (see my hummus dressing recipe for the details).
This salad is very meal prep friendly. You can cook the quinoa, roast the sweet potatoes, toast the sunflower seeds, and even prep the hummus dressing ahead of time. Just asssemble when you're ready to eat.
You can enjoy this salad hot or cold. Serve it warm when the sweet potaotes are fresh out of the oven and the quinoa is still toasty. Or, if you're meal prepping, simply let the ingredients cool and enjoy cold or reheated.

Key ingredients and substitutions

Sweet potatoes: Go for orange ones, not the white ones! Butternut squash or Hoakkaido pumpkin also work beautifully here. Just add roasting time as needed.
Quinoa: Any vaierty will do, but I love a mix of white and red quinoa for a little extra color and texture in this salad.
Vegetable broth: Cooking quinoa in vegetable broth (instead of water) is key to add a layer of flavor and bring this salad to the next level. You can use boxed or jarred vegetable broth. To keep the costs down, I like to use vegetable broth powder that I add to the cooking water.
Arugula: If you're not n arugular fan, try massaged kale, baby spinach or other seasonal greeens.
Sunflower seeds: They add some crunch and nuttiness! Pine nuts are a nice alternative if you're willing to splurge.
Cranberries: For a pop of sweetness! Feel free to swap them with raisins, dried figs, or dates instead. Just make sure to cut larger fruits into small pieces.
Hummus: I recommend plain, simple hummus for the dressing. Look for one with a short ingredient list. Chickpeas, tahini, oil, lemon juice, and spices are the essentials. Try to avoid natural flavorings and preservatives if possible.

Elo's tips

Cut the sweet potatoes into small cubes, smaller than bite-sized pieces. They'll roast faster and more envely.
Cook the quinoa in vegetable broth. I'm repeating myself but this hack makes all the difference in taste.
Steam the quinoa. Once it has absorbed all the vegetable broth, remove the saucepan from the heat and cover it with a lid. The steaming process will make the quinoa even fluffier.
Place the cranberries in a bowl with hot water. They will plump up and be juicier.

Step-by-step instructions

Step 1: Roast the sweet potatoes. Peel and cut them into small dice. Season them with olive oil, smoked paprika, garlic powder, oregano, and salt. Spread them out on a baking sheet in a single layer. Roast them for 20 minutes until soft and golden.

Step 2: Cook the quinoa. Start by rinsing the quinoa in a fine-mesh strainer under cold water. Add it to a saucepan with double its volume of vegetable broth. Bring it to a boil, then simmer over medium heat until all the liquid has been absorbed. It usually takes about 15 minutes.

Step 3: Dry-roast the sunflower seeds. Add them to a small nonstick pan and toast them without oil over medium-high heat until they turn golden. Stir regularly and watch them carefully to prevent them from burning.

Step 4: Make the hummus salad dressing. Add the hummus and water to a jar. Close with a lid and shake until combined or simply use a whisk. Add more water if you prefer a thinner consistency.

Storage and meal prep tips

Storage: If you're prepping ahead, store the cooked quinoa, roasted sweet potatoes, and hummus dressing in separate containers in the refrigerator for 4-5 days. Keep the toasted sunflower seeds in an airtight container in your pantry.
Meal prep: For grab-and-go lunches, add everything to your lunch boxes but wait to add the arugula until the day before eating. Store the dressing separately so it doesn't get soaked up by the other ingredients before lunchtime.
Leftovers: The dressed salad will keep in the fridge for 24 hours. After that, the arugula can get a bit soggy.
Reheating: Reheat the quinoa and sweet potatoes in the microwave or the oven at 300°F (150°C) until just warm. Then, toss with the arugula, drizzle hummus dressing, and top with sunflower seeds and cranberries.

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