Farro Roasted Beet Arugula Salad

Farro Roasted Beet Arugula Salad has the nutty, hearty texture from the farro mixed with earthy beets and sweet mission figs.  This salad makes a great addition to a brunch, shower, or lunch by adding not only a tasty dish but a pretty one too. 

A few weeks ago we made our first trip back to Chicago since moving to Cleveland in December.  

It felt so good to be back and get to see all of our friends that we miss dearly.  

I lived in Chicago for over 10 years and it will always feel like home to me.

That is where I met Mike.  We lived in our first apartment as a couple.

And by apartment I mean studio. Tiny one bedroom studio that made us learn to live together in a very small space.  

If you can survive that you can survive anything. 🙂  

It is the place that both of my babies were born.  We bought our first home in Chicago and built it into a place we loved, and started raising our family in.

Chicago will always have a special place in my heart.

While in Chicago we stayed with Mike’s brother and had a nice family brunch of Sunday.  

My sister-in-law is a fantastic cook and is always willing to try recipes that I might be a little skeptical of.  

For example, she made a curry cauliflower hummus with olives and giardiniera that was out of this world!

She also made a roasted beet salad that she found in her Cooking Light magazine recently.  

When I first heard her mention what was in it the salad I wasn’t convinced I would like it, but boy was I pleasantly surprised.

Farro Roasted Beet Arugula Salad is perfect for a brunch, a baby or wedding shower or a light lunch.

I tend to forget how much I love roasted beets in salads.  

I enjoy beets on their own but I enjoy them even more with leafy greens.  

You can buy beets at the grocery store and roast them yourself, or take a short cut and buy them precooked at a place like Trader Joes.

The earthy roasted beets pair really well with the arugula and the nutty, hearty texture of farro.

I added sliced figs into my salad that created a nice sweet flavor.

If you don’t like figs you can feel free to leave them out or substitute a different dried fruit, like raisins or cranberries {check out below the recipe card where I give you more ingredient ideas that pair with this salad}.

If you are going to make this salad ahead of time I suggest not putting the dressing on it until you are ready to serve it because the dressing will wilt the arugula.  

I enjoy eating this salad warm {the farro and the beets warm it up after they are just cooked} but you can easily refrigerate the ingredients and serve it cold. It tastes great either way.

Other ingredients that would be good in this salad:

• Try adding cheese to this salad. Feta or goat cheese would be great options.
• Instead of almonds add in a handful of walnuts or hazelnuts.
• How about a can of beans for extra protein? Try chickpeas or white beans.
• You can leave out the figs if you don’t like them and substitute raisins or dried cranberries.

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Farro Roasted Beet Arugula Salad

Yield: 6

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes

Farro Roasted Beet Arugula Salad has the nutty, hearty texture from the farro mixed with earthy beets and sweet mission figs. This salad makes a great addition to a brunch, shower, or lunch by adding not only a tasty dish but a pretty one too.

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Ingredients

• 3-4 medium beets, scrubbed, leaves trimmed, roasted {you can use red or golden beets}
• 1/2 cup farro, cooked
• 1/2 cup almonds, chopped
• 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
• 3 cups arugula
• 6 black mission figs, sliced

For the dressing:

• 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 Tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon salt

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Scrub and trim the leaves off of the beets. Lightly coat the beats with olive oil.
2. Using aluminum foil wrap the beets and place them on a baking sheet. Roast in the oven for approximately 50-60 minutes, or until cooked through.
3. Cook the farro according to the package directions.
4. While the farro is cooking put the almonds, red onion, arugula and figs into a large salad bowl and mix.
5. Once the farro is done cooking set it aside and let it cool.
6. Remove the beets from the oven, let cool for 15 minutes. Peel the beets when cool enough to handle, then slice into small chunks and place in a bowl to cool.
7. Once the beets and the farro are cool add them into the salad and mix everything together.
8. In a mason jar mix together the olive oil, white wine vinegar and salt and pepper. Shake to combine.
9. Pour the dressing over the salad and mix until the dressing coats the salad.
10. Taste and adjust seasoning to your liking. Enjoy!

Notes

You can pre-roast the beets and store them in the refrigerate them overnight if you prefer your beets to be cold in salads.
If you want to take a short cut Trader Joes {and probably other grocery stores} sell precooked beets. You can buy them and serve them as is without having to cook them.
You can serve this salad warm or cold and it tastes great both ways. If you serve it warm just be aware that the arugula will wilt slightly.
This is a salad you can make the day before but I would wait to mix everything together until you are ready to serve. Keep the beets in a container, the farro in a container and just add everything together with the arugula and dressing when ready. If you prepare this salad too far in advance the arugula wilts.