Salt + Soil delivers seed-oil-free meals across coastal San Diego every Tuesday. Every dish runs on extra-virgin olive oil, avocado oil, or coconut oil, never seed oils. This week's Fall Blueberry Butternut Salad pairs pasture-raised chicken with roasted butternut squash, quinoa, pumpkin seeds, and a blueberry balsamic dressing built on extra-virgin olive oil. Five distinct plants, 38 grams of protein, and no gram of it needs counting.

Roasted butternut squash and blueberry balsamic is a fall pairing that's been showing up on Mediterranean-inspired tables for as long as squash has had a season, sweet and tart doing the work that a heavier sauce usually gets asked to do. Quality matters and not all protein is the same, as Dr. Hyman put it on The Dr. Hyman Show, and that's the thinking behind why we use pasture-raised chicken here instead of whatever protein happened to be cheapest that week. Most fall salads treat squash as a side note, a few cubes scattered on top for color. This one roasts it until the edges caramelize and builds the whole plate around it, so the squash carries as much weight as the protein does. Quinoa and pumpkin seeds add two more fiber sources on top of that, and the blueberry balsamic dressing runs entirely on extra-virgin olive oil, not canola, not soybean, not anything labeled "vegetable oil." This is what building a plate around quality protein, real fiber, and a fat that does its job looks like on a Tuesday.

For the vegan version, six ounces of chickpeas take the place of the chicken. Chickpeas bring their own protein and their own fiber, and the dish holds up on its own terms rather than reading like a substitution.

Ingredients

• 4 oz pasture-raised chicken breast (or 6 oz chickpeas for the vegan version)
• 1.5 oz quinoa (¼ cup dry)
• 2.5 oz spring mix
• 3.5 oz butternut squash (½ cup cubed)
• 1 tbsp pumpkin seeds
• ¼ cup microgreens

Blueberry balsamic dressing (yield: 3 oz)

• 2.5 tbsp blueberries
• 1.5 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tbsp filtered water
• ½ tbsp maple syrup
• ¼ tsp Dijon mustard
• ¼ tsp sea salt

Instructions

1. Peel and cube 3.5 oz butternut squash into half-inch pieces. Toss with a touch of olive oil and sea salt. Roast at 400°F for 20 to 25 minutes, until tender and caramelized at the edges. Let cool slightly.
2. Rinse 1.5 oz quinoa under cold water. Add ¼ cup water, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cover and cook until the water is absorbed and the quinoa is fluffy, about 12 minutes. Fluff with a fork. Yields approximately 3.5 oz cooked.
3. Add 2.5 tbsp blueberries, 1.5 tbsp balsamic vinegar, 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, ½ tbsp maple syrup, ¼ tsp Dijon mustard, and ¼ tsp sea salt to a blender. Blend until smooth. Add filtered water one tablespoon at a time until pourable. Taste and adjust, more maple for sweetness, more balsamic for tang.
4. Layer 3.5 oz cooked quinoa in the bowl, then 3 oz roasted butternut squash, then 3 oz cooked chicken (or 6 oz chickpeas for the vegan version). Top with 2.5 oz spring mix, ¼ cup microgreens, and 1 tbsp pumpkin seeds. Pack the dressing separately to pour on right before eating.

Every plate that leaves our kitchen gets built this way, pasture-raised or wild-caught protein, real fiber from real plants, fat from extra-virgin olive oil, avocado oil, or coconut oil, never a seed oil. Seed oils go through a level of industrial processing that changes what they are by the time they hit a pan, and extra-virgin olive oil doesn't, so it carries its own flavor into a dish instead of disappearing into it. This is what Food is Medicine looks like on a plate. See what's on this week's menu or learn more about  Salt and Soil Meal Delivery. If you're not in love with your first week, we'll make it right. If we can't leave you 100% satisfied, we'll offer a full refund.

FAQ

Where can I find seed oil free meals in San Diego?
Salt + Soil delivers seed-oil-free meals across coastal San Diego every Tuesday. Every dish is cooked in extra-virgin olive oil, avocado oil, or coconut oil, and never seed oils.

What makes a meal "seed-oil-free"?
A seed-oil-free meal avoids industrially processed oils like canola, soybean, and vegetable oil, cooking instead with extra-virgin olive oil, avocado oil, or coconut oil.

Is the Fall Blueberry Butternut Salad available with a vegan protein?
Yes. The vegan version swaps six ounces of chickpeas in place of the pasture-raised chicken breast, keeping the same roasted butternut squash, quinoa, and blueberry balsamic dressing.

Does Salt + Soil deliver outside San Diego?
Salt + Soil currently delivers fresh, seed-oil-free meals every Tuesday across coastal San Diego only.