Photo Credit: Douglas Despres

Mica Talmor

Pomella’s Butternut Squash & Quinoa Salad demonstrates the natural synergy found in the modern mash-up of Californian and Israeli ingredients and flavors—a theme that plays throughout the menu. This popular salad is built with well-loved ingredients, highlighting flavors that are both craveable and memorable. “This has been our best-selling salad since day one,” says Mica Talmor, Chef/Owner. “It’s also very well received by our vegan customers, without the cheese, since it provides full protein.”

To build the salad, Talmor roasts butternut squash with a house-made spice blend, integrating the warm tones of cumin and cinnamon with the tartness of sumac. She adds the seasoned and roasted squash to red quinoa, along with dried cranberries, toasted pumpkin seeds, scallions, arugula, manchego cheese and a pomegranate vinaigrette, together providing sweetness, acidity and sharpness. Arugula lends its own peppery notes, she says, while the manchego has a good pungency to balance everything out. The dressing uses pomegranate concentrate and Dijon mustard to cut the sweetness.