Now is the time where it is not too cold for soups yet but getting a bit too cool for nice cooling crispy salads. Which makes this tasty Autumn salad a nice and healthy immune-boosting inbetweener as we start to get the cooler days. Orange vegetables are a great choice for Autumn as they packed full of vitamin C and A which help boost our immune system as we head into winter. By cooking orange vegetables, you are allowing Vitamin A and carotene to absorb easier in the body. Cooked orange vegetables are one I would recommend including into your diet during Autumn as it helps create healthy cells in the immune system and in the digestive system. You can cook them by steaming, baking, roasting, boiling, sautéing, stir-frying, and stewing. There are so many ways to cook vegetables. Below is my tasty Autumn Salad enjoy.

SERVES 2

INGREDIENTS

• 2 carrots diced into 3cm pieces.
• 1 beetroot diced into slices
• 250g butternut pumpkin cut into 3cm pieces.
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil + extra for baking the vegetables
• 1/2 cup walnut halves
• 1 tablespoon honey or maple syrup
• 1 tablespoon orange juice
• 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
• 2 teaspoons wholegrain mustard
• 120g pkt Baby spinach leaves

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 180°C and line a baking tray with grease proof paper. Place carrots, pumpkin, beetroot onto a tray and drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Bake for 45 minutes util soft and golden, turning the vegetables over halfway through cooking.
2. While the vegetables are cooking mix the walnuts with ½ tablespoon (2 teaspoons) honey or syrup together and set aside. In the last 10 minutes of the vegetables cooking place the walnuts on the side of the vegetables on the grease proof paper and cook for a further 10minutes with the vegetables. Do make sure not to mix the walnuts with the vegetables.
3. Once cooked set the vegetables and walnuts aside to cool.
4. Place the orange juice, vinegar, mustard, olive oil and 2 teaspoons of honey or maple syrup in a screw-top jar and shake until well combined. Season as needed.
5. Once the vegetables and walnuts have cooled down mix them into a bowl with the baby spinach leaves and drizzle with your autumn salad dressing as needed.
6. This is also nice crumbled with vegan cheese or goat cheese.