Sweet potatoes? Check. Green bean casserole? Check. Stuffing? Ready to go. Are your holiday side dishes a little too… predictable? This festive wild rice salad showcases some of the best flavors of fall – with dried cranberries, crunchy apples and sprouted pumpkin seeds – while tempting with its textures and eye-catching colors.
Cranberry & Apple Wild Rice Salad
Makes 5 cups
Ingredients
1 cup wild rice, soaked then rinsed well
1 organic apple, diced
½ medium onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1 tsp. each cumin, cinnamon
½ tsp. each sea salt, black pepper
2 ½ cups water
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1/3 cup sprouted pumpkin seeds
Directions
- Soak rice 30 minutes to 4 hours (to remove phytic acid), then rinse rice. Set aside.
- Heat 4 quart sauté pan over medium heat and add veggies; cook veggies about 10 minutes until they begin to soften.
- Measure out spices in a small bowl, then stir into sauté pan.
- Add rice and 2 -½ cups of filtered water to pan.
- Bring rice and veggies to a boil, then turn heat down to a simmer.
- Cover and simmer about 50 minutes or until water is absorbed.
- Stir in cranberries and pumpkin seeds.
- Taste and adjust seasonings before serving.