Wild rice salad with kale, pecans and blueberries

Anniinbc

Ingredients

1 ½ cups wild rice

1 cup raw pecans

6 large kale leaves

3 tbsp walnut, pecan or vegetable oil

1 tbsp brown rice vinegar

2 tsp brown sugar

½ tsp fine sea salt

¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 red or yellow bell pepper, cored, seeded and chopped

4 green onions, finely chopped

1 cup fresh blueberries

Directions

1 Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the wild rice and cook until tender to the bite, about 45 minutes. Drain, rinse with cold water and set aside to cool.

2 Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350°F. Lay the pecans in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet and bake until toasted, about 10 minutes. (Watch very carefully - nuts go from toasted to burnt in the blink of

an eye.) Let the pecans cool, then roughly chop them; set aside. Trim and discard the thick stems from the kale, then chop the leaves. Use your hands to squish handfuls of the leaves until they soften and turn a darker shade of green; set aside.

3 In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the oil, vinegar, brown sugar, salt and pepper. Add the cooked rice and toss to coat. Add the kale, bell pepper and green onions and toss again. At this point the salad can be kept, covered and chilled, for up to 2 days. Add the blueberries and pecans just before serving - toss the salad to combine them or use them on top as more of a garnish for a prettier presentation.

Serves: 4 to 6

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