Beet and Farro Salad
Makes 8 side salads or 4 dinner
salads
Ingredients
1/2 c extra virgin olive oil
1/3 c balsamic dressing
2 T grainy mustard
1 pound baby beets, cooked (or canned)
1 head romaine lettuce, chopped
½ c farro
½ c Gorgonzola cheese
1 c pecans or walnuts, toasted and chopped
1 apple, diced
Directions
1)
Preheat oven
to 400 F.
2)
Make
vinaigrette: Mix oil, vinegar and mustard with a whisk or shake in a capped
mason jar.
3)
Cut COOKED
beets into 1” chunks and spread onto a cookie sheet. Place in oven for 5-8
minutes. Remove from oven and place in a bowl. Add dressing and cooked farro to
bowl and let sit at least 10 minutes.
4)
Place lettuce,
pecans, cheese and apple in a salad bowl. Once done soaking, pour the beets, farro and
dressing onto salad. Toss lightly to combine. Serve!
Notes
-What's farro, you say? It's a whole grain, a form of wheat. Most grocery stores now carry it, and some specialty stores have it in bulk. Be sure to follow the package's directions when you cook it! Some farro is "pearled" and it can be cooked in 15 minutes. Other brands are not pearled and that takes about 50 minutes of boiling. Easy, yes, but you need to plan for that cook time.
-This salad might take awhile if you start from scratch right when you want to eat it. But if you plan ahead it's a great use for leftovers! You can pre-toast the nuts, use precooked beets and stash frozen cooked grains in your freezer. Done right, this is a quick meal!
-I used Trader Joe’sprecooked baby beets. So
convenient! But you can roast your own beets, just roast peeled, cut raw beets
about 40 minutes in the oven at 400 with a little olive oil.
-Not into romaine? Try
spinach, arugula, and/or watercress for a different take on this salad.
-Make this salad gluten free by subbing wild rice for farro.
