This hearty salad with wheat berries and fruit is exceptionally healthy. The vitamin C found in ingredients like oranges and kale supports the immune system.
For the wheat berries
Rinse the wheat berries and then put them in a medium pot with the water and the salt. Bring them to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook, covered, for 1 hour, until the wheat berries are just tender.
Add a few cups of cold water to the pot, stir, and then strain. Place the wheat berries in a very large bowl to cool, stirring occasionally to help them along.
For the curry and orange vinaigrette
Grate the peel and then juice one-half of the orange. Place 2 tablespoons of the juice with the orange peel and the remaining ingredients in a small jar. Seal the lid tightly and shake vigorously to combine. Set aside at room temperature.
You can also use an immersion blender or milk frother to mix the vinaigrette.
The authors recommend using Dijon mustard. Since you will be using the orange peel, it is best to buy organic oranges that haven’t been sprayed.
For the salad
Combine the cooled wheat berries with the kale in a large bowl. Toss with 120 mL of the dressing.
The original recipe calls for baby kale. If you are using larger leaves, first remove the hard stalk and cut the leaves into strips that are about 5 mm wide and a maximum of 5 cm long.
The amounts listed for the salad ingredients are for a recipe that makes 8 servings. If you are making a smaller or larger batch, adjust the amounts accordingly.
Cut the grapes in half and separate the oranges into segments. Add the grapes and orange segments and another 60 mL of the dressing, and toss again. Add more dressing if desired, and season with salt and pepper.
The authors recommend using half red and half green seedless grapes.
Garnish and serve
Toast the walnuts briefly in a skillet. Make sure that they only take on a little bit of color. Coarsely chop the toasted walnuts and sprinkle over the salad right before serving.
Detailed Nutritional Information per Person for this Recipe
The majority of the nutritional information comes from the USDA (US Department of Agriculture). This means that the information for natural products is often incomplete or only given within broader categories, whereas in most cases products made from these have more complete information displayed.
If we take flaxseed, for example, the important essential amino acid ALA (omega-3) is only included in an overarching category whereas for flaxseed oil ALA is listed specifically. In time, we will be able to change this, but it will require a lot of work. An “i” appears behind ingredients that have been adjusted and an explanation appears when you hover over this symbol.
For Erb Muesli, the original calculations resulted in 48 % of the daily requirement of ALA — but with the correction, we see that the muesli actually covers >100 % of the necessary recommendation for the omega-3 fatty acid ALA. Our goal is to eventually be able to compare the nutritional value of our recipes with those that are used in conventional western lifestyles.
This hearty salad with wheat berries and fruit is exceptionally healthy. The vitamin C found in ingredients like oranges and kale supports the immune system.
Wheat berries: Wheat berries can be used much like rice. You can eat them pure, as a side dish, or mixed into other dishes, for example, into salads. Like other whole grain products, they are rich in fiber and stimulate digestion. You can find more information under our ingredient Wheat berries.
Kale: Kale is one of the vegetables with the highest levels of vitamin C, and it contains a broad spectrum of nutrients, including many vitamins, fiber, and phytonutrients. When purchasing, you should look for kale that has a rich green color and crisp leaves. Withered or dry tips usually have a yellow color. You can store fresh kale for up to 5 days in the refrigerator without it losing too much of its essential nutrients. You can also blanch kale and then freeze it.
Grapes: Grapes can be eaten raw, dried (raisins), or processed into grape juice or alcoholic beverages (wine).
Although grapes are nontoxic to most animals, care should be taken in the case of dogs. This is because grapes contain an as yet unidentified substance that is toxic to dogs. If a dog consumes more than 10 grams of grapes per kilogram of body weight, they can get grape poisoning. In the case of raisins, this can happen when only 2.8 grams per kilogram of body weight are consumed.
Oranges: Oranges, also known as sweet oranges, are the world’s most commonly cultivated citrus fruit and one of the best known sources of vitamin C. Oranges can be used in all types of cooking, no matter whether raw or cooked, and orange peel is used to add flavor or aroma.
Tips
Segmenting oranges: Cut the top off the orange and then the bottom so that it can stand on its own. Use a sharp knife to cut away the peel starting at the top, making sure to remove the white skin completely. Now carefully cut on the white lines (membranes) of the orange down to the center. Do this on both sides of each segment and then remove the segments.
Toasting nuts: Place the nuts in a skillet and toast over medium heat until they take on a little color. Shake the skillet regularly and continue to do so until they are toasted. This can happen very quickly. Toasting intensifies both the flavor and aroma of the nuts.
Alternate preparation
Kale: The authors recommend using baby kale. But you can also use the “full-grown” variety. If you do so, first remove the hard stalk and cut the leaves into thin strips.
Faster preparation of wheat berries: You can buy ready-to-go wheat berries at the grocery store. These wheat berries are precooked in a steam pressure process and only need to be cooked at home about 15 minutes. In a comparison with unprocessed wheat berries, however, this variety was found to contain lower levels of fiber and minerals (Source: association for independent health information and advising (Verband für Unabhängige Gesundheitsberatung, UGB). You can also prepare unprocessed wheat berries the day before and store them in the refrigerator until you are ready to use them.
Alternative sweeteners: Instead of agave syrup, you can use acacia honey (strictly speaking, honey is not vegan) or another sweetener such as maple syrup.
