This $6-Per-Serving Grain Bowl Is Salad-Shop Fancy

At any given time, there's a rotating handful of Chatelaine recipes that I make on repeat until I put them on hiatus for fear I'll tire of them. (This baked beans recipe is an example.) I recently added our squash and quinoa salad back into the fold after a well-deserved rest—and it's never tasted better.

The first time I made it, my niece said it "looked like a $30 salad," and she wasn't wrong. The quinoa base is studded with roasted butternut squash, goat cheese, candied nuts, mint leaves and pomegranate seeds, then drizzled with a ruby red sumac-infused dressing. (I also add a bottom layer of spinach leaves when I make it for extra heft.) And, despite the extensive ingredient list, the total cost per serving rings in at a totally reasonable six dollars.

There's only one caveat: it takes a minute—or 45, to be precise—to make, as there are multiple steps. You cube and roast the squash, cook the quinoa, make the nut clusters, then the dressing. However, it's one of those recipes where (to me, anyways) the steps feel meditative, not onerous. And the end result is 100 percent worth it.

It's also a great recipe to make ahead for work lunches. I store the components separately, and assemble in the morning—adding the dressing and nuts at the office, right before I dig in.

Here’s the cost breakdown for four servings

I already had olive oil, lemons, pepitas, maple syrup and spinach on hand—and I skipped the fresh mint. (I also can’t find sumac at the moment at my local No Frills, so I've been subbing with the same amount of paprika plus the zest of one lemon.)

I stocked up on the following at No Frills:

• Clic Quinoa Grains, 907 g: $5.99
• Butternut squash, 1 kg: $7.07
• 1 pomegranate: $2.49
• Tre Stelle Feta Cheese, 200 g, $5.99
• No-Name Walnut Pieces, 100 g, $3.50

Grand total: $25.04

Ready to cook it for yourself? Get our recipe for Roasted Squash Quinoa Salad.

Looking for more inexpensive recipes? Try this $20 tofu stir-fry, this $10 lentil soup, this $27 sheet pan salad or this $19 noodle dish.