Cranberry Walnut Wild Rice Salad
Make this sweet and tangy Cranberry Walnut Wild Rice Salad for a simple meal, holiday side dish, or potluck get-together.
Spring is a perfect time to enjoy grain salads. They are a great transition from hearty winter meals to light summer fare. The tangy, sweet, chewy goodness of this cranberry walnut wild rice salad is a satisfying meal on its own—or a great side dish—making it an ideal choice for potluck get-togethers.
Key Ingredients and Tools
Wild Brown Rice Mix
I buy my wild brown rice mix from the bulk section of our local health food store. If you don’t have that option, Lundberg Wild Blend appears very similar. For this recipe, I cook the rice in my rice cooker (on the brown rice setting) several hours ahead and remove it immediately when the timer goes off. Fluffing it with a fork and setting it aside to cool will prevent the rice from becoming mushy.
Apple Vinaigrette
The apple vinaigrette in this recipe is adapted from a Forks Over Knives recipe. I simplified the ingredients a bit. Feel free to compare the recipes and use whichever one you prefer.
Hidden Kale
I always try to sneak dark leafy greens in wherever I can. You would hardly guess this salad includes raw baby kale. While baby kale leaves are tenderer than adult plants, mincing them in the food processor makes them even more palatable.
Food Processor
A good food processor makes all the difference. My Breville processor was a bit pricey, but I ended up splurging on it after returning one that proved the saying, “You get what you pay for.”
Cranberry Walnut Wild Rice Salad
Ingredients
Apple Vinaigrette
- 1 apple (organic)
- ¼ cup water
- ½ tsp Himalayan cooking salt
- ¼ tsp ground cumin
- ⅛ tsp ground cinnamon (ceylon)
- ⅙ tsp ground black pepper
- 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tbsp pure maple syrup
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
Salad
- 4 cups wild brown rice mix cooked (2 cups uncooked)
- 1/2 red onion medium
- 2 stalks celery
- 2 cups baby kale
- 1 cup chopped walnuts
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- 1 apple medium, diced
Instructions
- If you do not have cooked rice on hand, cook rice in advance, fluff with fork and allow to cool.
Apple Vinaigrette
- Remove the core from the apple and place the apple with the other vinaigrette ingredients in a high-speed blender.
- Begin blending on the lowest setting and slowly turn up to the highest setting.
- Blend on high for approximately 40 seconds and then set aside.
Salad
- Place onion in a food processor fitted with the S blade and pulse until onion is finely chopped.
- Scrape onion into a bowl and repeat the process with the celery and baby kale, separately.
- Add walnuts and cranberries to chopped vegetables and stir until well combined.
- Scape cooled rice into chopped vegetables with a fork (to help separate the grains) and stir until well combine. You may find it helpful to scrape and stir 1/3 of the rice at a time.
- Add vinaigrette and diced apples to the salad, stir and serve or refrigerate for 1-2 days for later use.
Notes
Nutrition
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