*This Roasted Beet & Farro Salad with Arugula & Blueberries is vegan and free of dairy and refined sugars.
One of the necessities when it comes to readily available foods to eat in our fridge is a hearty salad. I’m the type of person that can’t just grab an apple or a handful of nuts in the middle of a busy day and power on. I’m more a feast or famine type (leftovers save me!) in the sense that I will stop and eat something if there is an actual put-together meal waiting for me to dish up or I’ll forget to eat entirely. Not good when 6 o’clock rolls around and I’m trying to make a last push to get dinner on the table with an empty stomach and 4 little pterodactyls (their screeching has led me to believe that is what they are) are running circles around my ankles, loudly demanding sustenance. Hangry doesn’t even begin to describe me.
To prevent the above scenario from frequently repeating itself, I try and keep a big, grain-filled salad in the fridge whenever I can. This Roasted Beet & Farro Salad is one such salad.
The base of this salad, as you may have guessed, is Farro. Farro is an ancient grain that is larger than wheat but smaller than Kamut. It is still slightly chewy when cooked, which I love. Tossed with the Farro are roasted beets, arugula, dried blueberries, and a citrus vinaigrette.
You can use any variety of beet you like. I love golden beets and decided to mix red and gold for some pretty color variation. Candy cane beets would be so pretty in this salad too. Since the beets are served cold in this salad, you can roast them a day ahead of time if you like, since they do take awhile to cook, cool, and peel.
My favorite part of this salad it the dried blueberries. You could use fresh blueberries, but I like the dried because they add a chewy little concentrated punch of fruityness.
There may be a little extra citrus vinaigrette that doesn’t get put on the salad. Add the dressing slowly and toss. Add more to taste and if you happen to have some dressing left over? Lucky you. You’ll make another salad very happy.
More Summer-ready Salads:
Grapefruit Avocado Salad w/ Mustard & Honey Vinaigrette
Asian Sesame Chicken Wonton Pasta Salad
- 6 small Beets, any variety
- 1 small Sweet Onion
- 1 tablespoon Avocado Oil
- 1½ cups Farro (dry), cooked and cooled
- ¼ cup Dried Blueberries
- 1½ cups Arugula
- FOR THE DRESSING:
- juice of 2 Oranges
- ½ cup Avocado Oil
- 1 tablespoon Red Wine Vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Maple Syrup
- 1 tablespoon Onion (just eyeball a piece)
- 1½ teaspoons Stone Ground Mustard
- 1 teaspoon Himalayan Pink Salt
- dash of White Pepper
- Wash beets and wrap each beet individually in tin foil. Place on a baking sheet and roast in the oven at 375 degrees form 30-40 minutes, or until beets are tender. Remove from oven and let sit for 1-2 hours, or at least until they are cool enough to handle. Remove the tin foil and peel the skins away from the beets. Slice the beets into thin rounds and set aside.
- While the beets are cooking, thinly slice the onion and place in a saute pan with the avocado oil. Saute on meduim/high heat until onion is lightly caramelized. Place onions in a bowl.
- When onions are cool, add the cooked farro, blueberries, and arugula to the bowl along with ½ of the dressing and toss to coat and evenly distribute ingredients. Taste and add more dressing, as desired.
- Spread the salad out on a serving platter and place the beets evenly across the salad.
- Serve cold.
- FOR THE DRESSING:
- Place all ingredients in a high speed blender and process until very smooth. Store in an airtight container. Keep refrigerated.
