My Fall Favorite
I love a good Cobb salad. But I wanted a fall version. So I started playing in my kitchen. I roasted squash with the chicken. It made the whole house smell like autumn.
I added apples and cranberries for sweetness. The salty bacon and blue cheese balance it. Doesn’t that sound like a perfect plate? This matters because a good salad feels like a full meal. It keeps you happy and full for hours.
A Little Kitchen Magic
Here is my best trick. Roast the chicken and squash together. Lay the bacon right on top of the chicken. The bacon fat drips down. It makes everything taste richer. I still laugh at how easy it is.
While that roasts, you can do everything else. Boil your eggs and make the dressing. Fun fact: shaking dressing in a jar is the fastest way to mix it! It feels less like work and more like fun. Do you have a favorite kitchen shortcut? I would love to hear it.
Why This Salad Works
Every bite has something different. You get crunchy seeds and soft squash. Sweet apple and salty cheese. This matters because eating should be a joy for your mouth. Texture and taste keep it exciting.
The dressing is just right. The maple syrup is sweet. The vinegar is tangy. They are friends with the mustard. It ties all the fall flavors together beautifully. What is your favorite salad topping? Is it something crunchy or something cheesy?
Putting It All Together
Let the chicken rest before you cut it. This keeps it juicy. I learned that the hard way once. My first try gave me dry chicken. Now I always wait five minutes.
Building the salad is the best part. Start with your greens as a bed. Then add all your toppings in little piles. It looks so pretty. Finally, drizzle your dressing over the top. Doesn’t that look amazing?
Your Turn in the Kitchen
This salad is great for sharing. It makes three big servings. You could even double it for a family dinner. It feels special but is simple to make.
The best meals mix old ideas with new twists. That is what this salad is. Will you try making it this week? Tell me if your family likes the roasted squash with the chicken. I think they will.
Ingredients:
| Ingredient | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Butternut Squash | ½ | peeled and diced |
| Apple | 1 | diced |
| Eggs | 4 | |
| Blue cheese crumbles | ⅓ cup | |
| Chicken breasts | 2 | |
| Bacon | 4 strips | |
| Dried Cranberries | ½ cup | |
| Pumpkin seeds (pepitas) | ⅓ cup | |
| Mixed greens | 8 oz | |
| Olive oil | 3 tablespoons | for dressing |
| Apple cider vinegar | 3 tablespoons | for dressing |
| Maple syrup | 1 tablespoon | for dressing |
| Dijon mustard | 1 teaspoon | for dressing |
| Salt & pepper | to taste | for dressing |
My Cozy Fall Cobb Salad Story
Hello, dear! It’s Anna. Come sit a moment. I want to tell you about my Fall Cobb Salad. It’s not your usual salad. It’s a whole harvest meal in a bowl. I make it when the air gets crisp. The colors just make me so happy. Doesn’t that smell amazing? It mixes sweet, salty, and crunchy all together. My grandkids even eat their greens with this one. Let’s make it together.
Step 1: Roast the Squash and Chicken
First, we roast our squash and chicken. Heat your oven to 400ºF. Toss the diced squash with a little oil, salt, and pepper. Do the same for the chicken breasts. Lay them on a pan together. This saves a dish. I still laugh at the time I used a whole squash. What a mountain of food that was!
Step 2: Add the Bacon
Roast for 10 minutes. Then, give things a little toss. Flip the chicken. Now, lay the bacon strips right over the chicken. Back in the oven it goes for 20 more minutes. The bacon fat will drip down. It makes everything taste wonderful. (A hard-learned tip: use a big pan so nothing steams. We want crispy bits!)
Step 3: Boil the Eggs
While that cooks, let’s boil the eggs. My easy way is the stovetop method. Cover eggs in a pot with cold water. Bring it to a boil. Then, turn off the heat and wait 10 minutes. Move them to ice water after. This makes peeling so much easier. Perfect eggs every time.
Step 4: Make the Dressing
The dressing is simple magic. In a jar, mix oil, apple cider vinegar, maple syrup, and Dijon. Add a pinch of salt and pepper. Shake it until it looks creamy. The maple syrup is my secret. It’s like a sweet little hug for the bitter greens. Do you prefer sweet or tangy dressings? Share below!
Step 5: Assemble the Salad
Time to build our masterpiece! Let the chicken rest, then chop it. Chop the bacon too. Start with a bed of mixed greens. Now, add little piles of everything else. Apples, cranberries, cheese, seeds, and our roasted goodies. Top with those lovely boiled eggs. Drizzle your dressing over it all. Now, isn’t that a beautiful sight?
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes
Yield: 3 hearty servings
Category: Dinner, Salad
Three Fun Twists on Our Salad
This salad is like a favorite sweater. You can dress it up different ways. Try one of these twists next time. They are all so good.
- Sweet Potato Swap: Use diced sweet potatoes instead of butternut squash. Their color is just glorious.
- Nutty & Nice: Swap the pumpkin seeds for toasted pecans or walnuts. The toasty flavor is so cozy.
- No-Meat Feast: Skip the chicken and bacon. Add crispy chickpeas and extra cheese. It’s still wonderfully filling.
Which one would you try first? Comment below!
Serving It Up Just Right
This salad is a full meal. But I love it with a warm, crusty bread roll. Something to sop up the last bits of dressing. For a pretty plate, build it on a big platter. Let everyone see all the colorful rows. It’s a feast for the eyes first.
To drink? A chilled apple cider is perfect. It echoes the apple in the salad. For the grown-ups, a glass of dry hard cider pairs beautifully. It’s crisp and festive. Which would you choose tonight?
Keeping Your Fall Cobb Salad Fresh
This salad is best eaten fresh. But life gets busy. I like to store the parts separately. Keep the dressing in a little jar in the fridge.
Store the roasted squash, chicken, and bacon in one container. Keep the greens, apple, and toppings in another. This keeps everything crisp. I learned this the hard way with a soggy salad years ago.
You can roast a big batch of squash and chicken. Use it for lunches all week. This saves so much time on busy nights. Batch cooking means a healthy meal is always ready.
Have you ever tried storing it this way? Share below!
Simple Fixes for Common Salad Troubles
Is your squash still hard? Roast it longer. Small, even pieces cook faster and taste better. I once served crunchy squash. No one liked it!
Chicken dry? Do not overcook it. Let it rest for five minutes before cutting. This keeps the juices inside. Good technique makes food taste wonderful.
Dressing too sharp? Add a tiny bit more maple syrup. Taste as you go. Your confidence grows when you fix flavors yourself. Which of these problems have you run into before?
Fun fact: Pepitas are just pumpkin seeds without the white shell!
Your Quick Questions, Answered
Q: Is this salad gluten-free? A: Yes, all the ingredients listed are naturally gluten-free.
Q: Can I make parts ahead? A: Absolutely. Roast the squash, chicken, and bacon a day early.
Q: I don’t like blue cheese. A: Try feta or goat cheese instead. Use what you love.
Q: Can I double the recipe? A: For sure. Just use two sheet pans to roast everything.
Q: Any optional tips? A: Toast the pumpkin seeds in a dry pan. It adds a nice crunch. Which tip will you try first?
From My Kitchen to Yours
I hope you love this taste of fall. It has so many colors and textures. Making it should feel fun, not fussy.
I would love to see your creation. Have you tried this recipe? Tag us on Pinterest at @TheSchmidtyWife. Your photos make my day.
Happy cooking!
—Anna Whitmore.
Fall Cobb Salad
Description
A hearty Fall Cobb Salad recipe packed with seasonal flavors & perfect for lunch or dinner. Easy to make & delicious!
Ingredients
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400ºF. Add ½ tablespoon of the oil to the diced butternut squash. Add salt and pepper to taste and add to a sheet pan. Add another ½ tablespoon of the oil to the chicken breasts, season with salt and pepper, and add to sheet pan in-between pieces of the diced butternut squash.
- Transfer to the oven and roast 10 minutes. Toss and flip chicken. Lay the strips of bacon over top the chicken breasts. Transfer back to the oven and cook another 20 minutes. While everything cooks prepare the rest of the salad.
- Make the hard boiled eggs using one of the following methods. Once cooled down you can peel the eggs and cut them in half or quarters for serving. For Pressure Cooker: Add a trivet and 1 cup of water to the pressure cooker pot. Lay eggs on trivet. Seal lid, turn steam vent to sealing, and select manual/pressure cook. Set to high pressure for 3 minutes. Quick release, when the float drops carefully open the lid and transfer the eggs to a bowl of ice filled water to cool down. For Stovetop: Add eggs to the bottom of a pot. Add cold water to the pot until the eggs are fully covered. Transfer the cold pot to the stovetop and heat to medium-high. Wait for the water to come to a boil, once the water comes to a rolling boil, cover, remove the whole pot from the heat and let sit for 10 minutes. After the waiting period transfer the eggs to a bowl of ice filled water to cool down.
- Make the dressing by mixing the olive oil, apple cider vinegar, maple syrup, Dijon mustard, and salt and pepper. You can use a bowl with a whisk or a glass jar and a tight fitting lid to shake the dressing together.
- Once the chicken, bacon, and butternut squash is finished cooking (the chicken should reach an internal temperature of 165ºF) let the chicken rest for 5 minutes before cutting into pieces. Cut the bacon into pieces as well.
- Build your salad by laying down the mixed greens. Top with the pumpkin seeds, dried cranberries, diced apple, blue cheese crumbles, bacon pieces, chopped chicken, roasted butternut squash, and hard boiled eggs. Drizzle the dressing over top the salad before serving. Enjoy!
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