Spiced Roasted Vegetable Salad

And it’s Tuesday and we’re back in it with this spiced roasted vegetable salad.  It was a long weekend of staying inside and as the weather jumped 25 degrees since Saturday, I have been more than happy to get out of the house. Let me tell you, it was a LOT of dance parties for one. I can only sit on the couch for so long before I start to get crazy.

CRAZY. 

I found lots of things on the internet, and now know all about my sun sign (Leo), rising sign (Aquarius) and the “time of transition” I’m about to go through. I can tell you all about the late Justice Scalia, and all the “just revealed” secrets of the Gilmore Girls reboot. I can give a decent lip sync rendition of Mariah Carey’s “Without you.”  And finally, I can perform the choreography for “Oops, I Did it Again,” as well as “I’m a Slave 4U.”  And, thanks to the latter activity, I have minor whiplash #IwishIwaskidding #nowwatchme.

All of that awesomeness aside, I also made this salad.  A spiced roasted vegetable salad. Yes, it’s winter and I made a salad. I promise it’s good and hearty and will leave you satisfied and feeling good about your life choices.

It starts simple enough: roasted veggies. Anyway you want it, that’s the way you need it. I grabbed a parsnip, a turnip, an acorn squash, a few brussels sprouts and a bulb of fennel. Remember how we’re not scared of fennel anymore because we realized it’s so delicious? Right.   Wheat berries for texture and parsley for freshness.  And finally, a creamy spiced yogurt dressing, with just enough citrus to keep it light.

Let’s talk about the spice a bit because it is worth a mention.   The spice I used to flavor the dressing is a North African spice called Baharat. I can’t remember the last time I used it, but since it’s in my pantry, clearly I had.  I was going to use just regular curry powder but was distracted by this seemingly new and shiny spice. If you don’t have this, but have the curry powder or garam masala- go ahead and just use that.  Or if you want to make it, check this.

Ooh. Note to self- use lotion.

Anyway, it made for a dressing that was…sweet? Sweet is not the right word, but the baharat has all the scents and gives you all the feelings that trick your brain into thinking it’s sweet, but in fact it’s not. Does that make sense? Probably not at all, but that’s the best way I can describe it. So, bad job, me. Anyway, it came out so good; the perfect salad for when you’re feeling guilty about not eating your veggies because it’s 4F outside and all you want to eat is carbs and bread pudding. 

Or is that just me?

Written during the Grammys.

Spiced Roasted Vegetable Salad

February 16, 2016

Servings: 3

Prep: 10 min

Cook: 60 min

Total: 1 hr 10 min

Difficulty: Easy

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Roasted vegetable salad tossed with wheat berries and a creamy North African spiced dressing

By: Chrissy

Ingredients

• 1 cup wheat berries
• 2 TB olive oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp coarse pepper
• 1 parsnip, peeled and chopped
• 1 turnip, peeled and chopped
• 1 bulb fennel, chopped and fronds removed
• 1 acorn squash, peeled, deseeded and chopped
• 1 cup brussels sprouts
• 1 cup fresh parsley
• 1 cup arugula
• For the dressing:
• 1/4 cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt
• 1 tsp, heaping Baharat seasoning or curry powder
• 1 lemon, juiced and zested
• 1 tsp white vinegar

Directions

• Step 1 Preheat the oven to 375F.
• Step 2 Add all the chopped vegetables to a bowl and toss with olive oil, salt and pepper. Add to a baking dish and bake until browned and slightly crisped, about 90 minutes.
• Step 3 Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, add about 3 cups water. Add the wheat berries and cook until chewy, about 45-60 minutes. Drain and set aside.
• Step 4 Make the dressing my mixing together all the ingredients and stir well.
• Step 5 Once the veggies are roasted, add them to a large bowl with the wheat berries, parsley and arugula. Toss with the dressing, little by little, until desired coating is reached. Serve warm.