While I enjoy all fruit, I never purchase cherries too often because I always have felt limited as to what I could do with them. Usually the only thing I made was a basic fresh cherry pie or an apple cherry crisp.
But then I realized that I ain’t no basic chick and made this bright salad with all of the good things in life. Hells yes.
I’ll be honest with you, most of the time when I make a quinoa salad, I just throw what I have in the fridge in and somehow it always tastes exceptional. Probably because anything with quinoa is wonderful, as it absorbs flavor and adds a good chew.
This time I was aiming for a vegetarian nutritional powerhouse salad that you could really feel good about eating. I also wanted it to be gorgeous enough to make for a party or a girl’s night.
Check. And check.
What is this sweet potato quinoa salad made of?
Ancient Harvest Quinoa: I used a mixture of Ancient Harvest’s red quinoa, tri-color quinoa and their traditional quinoa in this recipe to give the salad a gorgeous color. You can use any of them; it won’t matter. I usually always keep my quinoa in a mason jar and mix them all together. The quinoa provides a natural vegetarian protein and plenty of fiber. Did you know that quinoa only takes takes 15 minutes to make? WIN.
Cherries: If you haven’t heard, cherries are full of anti-inflammatory properties and antioxidants. If you aren’t including cherries in your diet, it’s time to start NOW. If available, fresh cherries are the way to go. Of course, you can always sub peaches or blueberries if you can’t seem to find cherries and/or if they aren’t seasonal where you live.
Goat cheese: Creamy, tart and undeniably one of my favorite cheeses. I don’t eat cheese in my salads frequently, but had to make an exception here.
Basil: I always buy a few basil plants during the summer and keep them around the house; it’s much less expensive then purchasing it from the store.
Sweet potatoes: I roasted cubed sweet potatoes with a variety of spices to really enhance the salad’s texture and flavor. The sweet potatoes are a great source of fiber, vitamin A and C. Plus they’ll help to keep you satisfied.
Lightly candied walnuts: Crunchy, sweet and packed with omega 3s. What more do you need to know?
How long can you keep quinoa salad in the fridge?
You can keep this sweet potato quinoa salad in the fridge for about 5-7 days, so it’s perfect for meal prep! Try adding it to a mason jar for your weekday lunch. SO GOOD.
Okay, enough talk. It’s time to make this salad for your weekend eats. If you make this recipe, be sure to tag #ambitiouskitchen on Instagram so I can see your lovely creation! xo.
More healthy salad recipes you’ll love:
Fiesta Mango Black Bean Quinoa Salad
Kale, Edamame & Quinoa Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette
Curry Roasted Cauliflower Sweet Potato Salad
Winter Roasted Butternut Squash Black Lentil Salad with Grapes + Arugula
One Pot Moroccan Chickpea Quinoa Salad
Sweet Potato Quinoa Salad with Cherries, Goat Cheese + Candied Walnuts
Ingredients
- FOR THE DRESSING:
- 1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1 small lemon, juiced
- 1/8 teaspoon cumin
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 2 tablespoons finely diced fresh basil leaves
- FOR THE SALAD:
- 1/2 cup uncooked quinoa
- 2 medium sweet potatoes, cut into 1 inch cubes
- 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon oregano
- 1/8 teaspoon cumin
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup pitted and diced sweet dark red cherries
- 1/4 cup goat cheese crumbles
- FOR THE CANDIED WALNUTS:
- 1/4 cup walnut halves & pieces
- 1 tablespoon coconut sugar (brown sugar also works)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons coconut oil
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with foil and set aside.
- While oven is preheating you can start cooking the quinoa. Add 1 cup of water and 1/2 cup quinoa to a medium saucepan; place over high heat and bring to a boil. Once water and quinoa are boiling, reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, remove from heat and fluff quinoa with a fork. Pour into a large bowl.
- While quinoa is cooking you can roast the sweet potatoes: In a medium bowl, toss sweet potatoes, olive oil, garlic, oregano, cumin, cayenne pepper and salt together. Pour onto prepared foil-lined sheet and place in preheated oven for 15 minutes or until sweet potatoes are roasted and almost fork tender. You don't want them to get mushy, so I find that 15 minutes is perfect. Once done, you can allow them to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring them to the bowl with the quinoa.
- While sweet potatoes and quinoa are cooking, you can start preparing the candied nuts: Heat a small saucepan over medium-high heat and add walnuts, coconut sugar and coconut oil to a small saucepan; stir constantly until the sugar begins to melt, caramelize and turn golden. This should take 3-5 minutes. Transfer nuts to a piece of parchment paper and allow to cool completely.
- Prepare dressing by whisking olive oil, lemon juice, cumin, garlic, honey and basil together in a small bowl. Add dressing to the quinoa and sweet potato mixture; stir well to combine. Fold in cherries, goat cheese and walnuts. Garnish with extra goat cheese and basil, if desired. Serves 4. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
 This post is sponsored by Ancient Harvest. Thank you very much for supporting AK and the brands that help make this site possible.
39 comments
Sweet potatoes AND candied walnuts?! Monique, you totally just created my perfect meal! This looks incredible!
Love this recipe. Love that it has sweet cherries which makes anything delicious!
This is such a beauty of a salad! Full of superfoods, and I love the mix of flavors – especially the addition of cherries!
I am so making this ASAP! I just got some walnuts the other day, now just have to grab a sweet potato. I know it says salad, but I will tell my husband otherwise as he has a fear of salads 😉
This looks delicious!!! If I wanted to make it ahead would I keep the dressing separate until serving?
YUM! How delicious does this look? Love the sweet potato quinoa combo, what an amazing combination!
Ummm… yes. Yes x 100. Can I come for lunch?? Also, I wish I could add some chicken wing emoji’s to this comment.
I am all about making use of house basil plants, especially when cherries, sweet potatoes, and quinoa are involved. This looks delicious!
UGH, I haven’t had quinoa in the longest time! I seriously need to get some so I can make this!
So, I live in Michigan, where fresh cherries typically constitute about 50% of your diet in the summer. So I am ALL OVER this recipe. So fresh and full of lots of flavors. And Ancient Harvest is great. I love their quinoa pastas!
This looks FANTASTIC! I adore fresh cherries and quinoa makes an occasional appearance at our table so this looks perfect!
I love this recipe so much. Any time I can eat cherries in a side dish I’m a happy girl. Fabulous salad!
That color!! I am so in love with everything in this salad!
I feel the same way about cherries but mostly because I need to buy myself a damn cherry pitter and stop wasting like 20 minutes of my life pitting them! Obsessed with everything going on in this salad!
Making this today for lunch. Love to have all of my favorite, healthy foods in one bowl. Will add some raw baby spinach and sub raw sliced almonds for the pecans. Love!!?
This is gorrrrgeous and looks so bright and healthy! It’s right up my alley.
This looks so good- any substitution suggestions for when cherries are not in season?
So perfect for summer! Can’t wait to make this, yumyum
This looks like the ultimate quinoa salad! I can’t wait to try this out http://www.indigoandmouse.blogspot.com
Quinoa actually makes me really sick. What would you use as an alternative? Wild rice? This recipe looks amazing
Millet is a neutral grain and soaks up flavor.
This sounds so yummy…..only I am allergic to cherries…. do you think adding dryed cranberries would tast good? Was thinking of having this for a side on turkey day. Always like to change things up and add something different and new.
Dried cranberries would be perfect in here, too! Enjoy 🙂
You know, I wanted to love this salad. I doubled it and served it for Easter dinner as sort of an antidote to all the less healthy fare usually served at this meal. My only change was to make twice as much dressing, but the 20 people I served it to found it blah and flavorless. It was a disappointing celebration dish–I won’t make again without a serious flavor boost. (I just warmed some leftovers and added a shot of strawberry fig balsamic glaze and it was a start.)
You might try cooking the quinoa with broth or bouillon, I can barely eat the stuff when cooked in water.
This was so good. I can’t wait to make again. I did add a half cup of diced celery for a bit more crunch.
The extra crunch sounds delicious!! Glad you liked it!
I tried this tonight and it was absolutely delicious! What an amazing combination of flavors. Thanks for the great recipe.
I’m so glad you liked this one! It’s perfect in the summer 🙂
You knocked it out of the park with this! I substituted cherries for raspberries since they’re not in season and the tartness against the goat cheese with all the other ingredients is amazing! I’m going to make another batch for book club this week, I know they’ll love it!
So happy to hear that, Christine! Perfect for feeding a group 🙂
For my taste, this lacks a leafy green like fresh spinach. It’s just too much of the same texture and taste otherwise.
Feel free to toss in some greens next time (spinach or kale would be delicious). Perfect for customizing!
Go to salad in the winter months! I also like to add a little kale or spinach for another punch of colour and nutrients. Don’t skip the step on the candied nuts, they make the salad. We made this for Canadian Thanksgiving along with the herb roasted vegetables and no one was disappointed. We love anything AK!
So happy to hear that! Perfect for Thanksgiving 🙂
Made this for on a wintry Sunday afternoon. No cherries, so added dried cherries as suggested. The quick marinade for the sweet potatoes add such flavour as does the lemon/basil vinaigrette. It almost doesn’t need the goat cheese (but who ever says no to goat cheese?)… Again, another home run of a recipe. Thank you!
Love it! Glad enjoyed!
Such a beautiful dish, and I loved the flavors.
We tried this for the 1st time this week and ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT!! It’s super simple to whip together and makes for a satisfying lunch!!