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Do you find yourself eating the whole tray of appetizers when you’re at Thanksgiving? Can’t get enough small bites at Christmas? This Roasted Fig, Bacon, and Wheat Berry Salad has all the flavors that remind me of holiday parties, but it’s totally acceptable to eat the whole bowl!
Turn a classic appetizer into a salad!
One of my favorite party appetizers is bacon wrapped figs. I can’t get enough of them; it’s actually dangerous for me to make bacon wrapped figs as an appetizer because I’m liable to eat the entire batch.
What’s so great about bacon wrapped figs, you may ask? Well, it hits all the right flavor notes in a perfectly balanced way. The figs are sweet like honey. Bacon brings saltiness and umami. And the goat cheese stuffing adds a further salty tang that brings it all together.
The problem, though, is that eating a bunch of stuffed figs is not the same thing as having a full meal. So, I decided to take this flavor combination that I love, and turn it into a salad. This way, I feel way less guilty about eating the whole tray of bacon wrapped figs!
Farmers Market Ingredients and Substitutions
Mission Figs
Mission figs, or Black Mission figs, were first planted the missionaries that came over to San Diego in the latter half of the 18th century. They’re the largest commercial fig crop in California, and one of the most common varieties you’ll see at the farmers market.
Figs have a complex sweet flavor, almost like a dark molasses or honey.
You don’t have to use Mission Figs; any fig variety will work in this recipe. Don’t like figs? You can also use dates, which are similarly sweet and pair nicely with bacon and goat cheese.
Wheat Berries
Wheat berries are the whole wheat kernel; you’d have whole wheat flour if you were to grind these into a powder. They have a great chewy texture, and provide the base for this salad.
Unfortunately, if your diet needs to be gluten free for any reason, you should avoid wheat berries. Instead, substitute with a gluten free grain, such as quinoa or buckwheat.
Got a lot of wheat berries to use up? You might also be interested in my recipe for Sausage and Cranberry Stuffed Delicata Squash, which is another great recipe that celebrates holiday flavors in a more everyday dish.
Oyster Mushrooms
Mushrooms add to the meatiness of the bacon, and round out the rest of the salad. I recommend oyster mushrooms, as they are a relatively affordable gourmet mushroom; I see them all the time at the farmers market for a great price. But you don’t have to use oyster mushrooms specifically; any mushroom variety will do.
Tips and Tricks
Wheat berries can be annoying to cook. Not that it’s a hard task, but it takes a while to get them perfectly al dente.
Always rinse your wheat berries before cooking. Often, you’ll find sticks, pieces of the wheat stalk, or even small stones inside the mix, so you’ll want to take the time to
I recommend cooking up a large batch, and then storing the cooked wheat berries in the freezer. Freeze them in 1-2 cup servings, that way you only need to thaw what you need for this salad.
STOVETOP
Cooking wheat berries on the stovetop is easy, but it does take time. Add them to a pot of boiling stock or cooking liquid; the ratio should be 3:1 liquid to wheat berries. Simmer the wheat berries until soft and tender. The kernels will be chewy, but they should not be hard or crunchy in the middle. This process can take over an hour for 1 cup of dried wheat berries to cook.
INSTANT POT (PRESSURE COOKER)
Using an Instant Pot is my recommended method for cooking wheat berries. This will cut your cook time in half when compared to the stovetop method (30-45 minutes as opposed to over an hour). The ratio of cooking liquid to wheat berries stays the same for this method.
Don’t be alarmed if there is still liquid in the Instant Pot after the cook time has been reached and the pressure has been released. Any excess liquid can be drained as long as you are happy with the texture.
But what about the leftovers?
Since this Roasted Fig Salad consists of several distinct components, it’s fairly easy to store leftovers. Keep the roasted figs and oyster mushrooms in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days. The bacon and wheat berries can be kept in the fridge for a week, or frozen for three months. Similarly, the dressing can be kept for up to a week in the fridge so long as it’s in a separate container.
Roasted Fig, Bacon, and Wheat Berry Salad
This Roasted Fig, Bacon, and Wheat Berry Salad has all the flavors that remind me of holiday parties, but it's totally acceptable to eat the whole bowl!
Ingredients
Bacon Wheat Berries with Red Wine Vinaigrette
- 4 strips bacon
- 1 clove garlic, finely minced
- 1 tsp stone ground mustard
- ¼ cup red wine vinegar
- ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 ½ cups cooked wheat berries
- 2 tbsp chives, finely chopped
Roasted Figs and Mushrooms
- 1 pint Mission figs
- ½ lb oyster mushrooms
- 2 tbsp avocado oil
- Salt and pepper, to taste
For the Salad
- 2 cups baby spinach
- ¼ cup goat cheese crumbles
Instructions
Bacon Wheat Berries with Red Wine Vinaigrette
- Lay out the strips of bacon on a sheet pan, and bake in an oven at 375°F until crispy, about 10 minutes. Once bacon is cooked, crumble the bacon into a medium sized mixing bowl. Save the rendered bacon fat in the refrigerator for other recipes.
- Mix the red wine vinaigrette by adding the minced garlic, mustard, red wine vinegar, and olive oil to a jar. Shake to emulsify.
- Add the cooked wheat berries to the mixing bowl with the bacon, red wine vinaigrette and chives. Stir together to combine, and set aside for the flavors to meld
Roasted Figs and Mushrooms
- Slice figs into quarters and tear the oyster mushrooms into bite sized pieces. Toss with the avocado oil and spread out on a sheet tray in a single layer.
- Roast at 375°F for 20 minutes or until the figs and mushrooms are a deep golden brown.
Final Salad Assembly
- Layer each bowl with a handful of baby spinach. Add a scoop of the bacon wheat berries and roasted figs. Top with the goat cheese crumbles.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 535Total Fat: 33gSaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 25gCholesterol: 18mgSodium: 359mgCarbohydrates: 49gFiber: 9gSugar: 19gProtein: 15g
Calculated nutrition values are not always accurate, but can provide a general idea for planning purposes. Please do not rely on this information as it may not be complete. Recipes that include unusual ingredients, especially scrap ingredients, will have the least accurate information with this calculator.
