Beet and Wild Rice Salad
My beet and wild rice salad with spiced pecans goes from packable lunch to holiday table ~ this superfood salad is healthy and super delicious!!
Servings: 8 servings
Ingredients
- 2 medium beets, roasted or boiled, peeled, and diced or sliced in small wedges.
- 4 cups cooked wild rice
- 2 handfuls of baby arugula
- 1/3 cup thinly sliced red onion
- 2-3 Tbsp pepitas
- 1/3 cup feta cheese crumbles
spiced candied pecans (this will make more than you need for this salad)
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp chipotle powder
- pinch salt
- 1 Tbsp water
- 1 cup pecan halves
dressing
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar (or more to taste)
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tsp honey
- pinch salt
Instructions
to make the salad
- Put the wild rice in a serving bowl and toss with the dressing. Add more salt to taste. Note: you can reserve some of the dressing to add later if you like, especially if you aren't planning on serving the salad right away, since the rice will absorb some of the dressing over time.
- Toss the dressed rice with the arugula.
- Arrange the beets and red onion slivers on top, followed by the pecans, pepitas, and crumbled feta.
to make the candied pecans
- Line a baking sheet with a piece of parchment, or a silpat mat. Set aside.
- Put the sugar, chipotle, salt, and water in a small skillet and heat over medium to medium high heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture liquifies and becomes bubbly.
- Stir in the pecans, so they get coated in the caramel syrup, and, stirring constantly, continue to cook them for about 3 minutes. Be careful not to over cook them, or cook them over too high a heat, because they can burn.
- Pour them onto the parchment paper and separate them as best you can with your spoon. Let them cool before using. Set aside 1/2 cup for this salad, and save the rest for snacking, or more salads.
to make the dressing
- Put all the ingredients in a jar with a cap and shake until thick and emulstified. Taste to adjust any of the ingredients.
Notes
- To roast beets, trim greens and arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet. Cover with foil and roast in a 400F oven for 1-2 hours, or until the tip of a sharp knife pierces the flesh easily. When cool enough to handle, peel and dice or slice.
- To cook wild rice, measure out 1 heaping cup of rice and add to 4 cups of boiling water. Lower heat, cover, and simmer for about 50 minutes, or until tender to the taste. Drain.
- If your spiced pecans remain sticky and do not dry to a nice crunchy texture, you did not cooked them long enough.
Nutrition
Calories: 257 kcal · Carbohydrates: 32 g · Protein: 6 g · Fat: 13 g · Saturated Fat: 2 g · Polyunsaturated Fat: 2 g · Monounsaturated Fat: 8 g · Cholesterol: 6 mg · Sodium: 119 mg · Potassium: 296 mg · Fiber: 4 g · Sugar: 12 g · Vitamin A: 203 IU · Vitamin C: 3 mg · Calcium: 62 mg · Iron: 1 mg
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators. Although The View from Great Island attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.
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