When you want to eat carbs but also want to be healthy, eat this Wild Rice Salad with Radicchio and Roasted Grapes!
You’ll absolutely love this hearty and filling Wild Rice Salad. It’s tossed with radicchio, arugula, toasted almonds, roasted grapes, aged goat cheese, and a delicious sherry vinaigrette. The creamy cheese and sweet grapes balance out the bitter radicchio. The almonds provide an amazing crunchy texture, while the wild rice is super earthy and nutty.
Why Roasted Grapes?
While you definitely can use fresh grapes and skip the roasting step, I wouldn’t! The wild rice salad is so much nicer when the grapes are roasted. The outside caramelizes, giving the grapes more flavor. The texture also changes, becoming soft and jammy and utterly delicious.
Ingredient Notes:
- Honey – You can also use agave here instead.
- Sliced Almonds – I used sliced almonds here, since that’s what I had in my pantry. You can also use slivered almonds. if you want to use another nut entirely, I’d recommend walnuts or pecans. If you want to use a seed, try pepitas or sunflower seeds.
- Grainy Mustard – You can substitute Dijon, if you don’t have grainy mustard at home or cannot find it.
- Sherry Vinegar – I like sherry vinegar here, but you can use red wine vinegar instead, if you don’t have sherry.
- Garlic Powder – This is my favorite garlic powder of all time, made by Burlap & Barrel. I highly recommend you buy it!
- Aged Goat Cheese – One of my favorite cheeses is an aged goat Gouda called Midnight Moon, which you can find at most Whole Foods. I’ve seen it at other grocery stores with a decent cheese counter as well. However you can get any aged goat cheese, gouda cheese, or even a fresh goat cheese.
Wild Rice Salad with Radicchio and Roasted Grapes
Equipment
- Parchment Paper
- 1 Whisk
Ingredients
- 2 cups red grapes cut in half lengthwise
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil
- 3 teaspoons honey
- Kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- ½ cup sliced almonds
- 2 teaspoons grainy mustard
- 4 teaspoons sherry vinegar
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ head radicchio torn into medium-sized pieces
- 3 cups 3 oz. arugula
- 1 cup uncooked wild rice cooked to package instructions and cooled completely
- 3 oz. aged goat cheese like Midnight Moon, crumbled
Instructions
- Adjust rack to top position and preheat oven to 450°F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
- On the parchment-lined sheet pan, toss the grapes with the avocado oil, a third of the honey, and a big pinch of Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Roast on the top rack for 15 minutes, until softened and starting to char. Let cool completely.
- Heat a small pan over medium heat. Add almonds and cook, stirring occasionally, until toasted and golden, 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
- For the dressing, in a large bowl, whisk together the mustard, vinegar, garlic powder, and remaining honey. While whisking, slowly drizzle in the olive oil, little by little, until emulsified. Season with a big pinch of Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.
- To the bowl with the dressing, add the radicchio, arugula, wild rice, roasted grapes, almonds, and aged goat cheese. Season with Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper and toss to combine. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Once dressed, salad should be eaten immediately.
All components can be prepared ahead of time and stored separately until ready to dress and eat.
Roasted grapes can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. Let come to room temperature before using.
Cooked wild rice can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. Let come to room temperature before using.
Salad dressing can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one week. Let come to room temperature before using.
Toasted almonds can be stored in an airtight container in the pantry for up to one week.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
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