Sure, you could make your own salad and top it with a classic dressing, like Italian or ranch. But why not kick things up a notch and make your own pumpkin vinaigrette dressing?

There's no shortage of pumpkin spice products you can buy at the grocery store. But if you really want the authentic taste of pumpkin, you can't go wrong with recipes that incorporate the canned version of the vegetable. In this case, you can make your own sweet and savory salad dressing by combining canned pumpkin with mustard, maple syrup, oil and vinegar, and salt and pepper.

The rest of this salad features nutrient-packed greens like spinach, kale, and baby chard, along with onion slices, dates, walnuts, and pears. But the pumpkin dressing is definitely the star of the show. You wouldn't think that adding so many flavors together would be so delicious, but it all comes together perfectly. Your dinner guests will want to know the secret to the flavorful vinaigrette!

And if you have extra canned pumpkin, these fudgy pumpkin brownie bites are the perfect way to use up the vegetable and add a sweet treat onto this meal. It is fall, after all, and there's no such thing as too much pumpkin. And there are plenty of ways to use the vegetable that have nothing to do with pumpkin pie.

Nutrition: 312 calories, 11 g fat (1 g saturated), 131 mg sodium, 7 g fiber, 43 g sugar, 4 g protein

Makes 6 servings

Ingredients

1/4 cup cider vinegar
3 Tbsp canned pumpkin
2 Tbsp pure maple syrup
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp grainy Dijon mustard
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
9 cups torn mixed greens (baby kale, baby chard, spinach, and romaine)
2 pears, cored and sliced
1/2 cup slivered red onion
12 whole Medjool dates, pitted and quartered
1/2 cup toasted walnut pieces

How to Make It

For the vinaigrette, in a jar with a screw-top lid combine vinegar, pumpkin, maple syrup, oil, mustard, salt, and pepper. Cover and shake well.
In a large bowl, place greens. Drizzle with 1/3 cup of the vinaigrette; toss to coat. Place greens on serving plates. Top with pears, onions, dates, and walnuts. Pass remaining vinaigrette.