Red Citrus & Warm Kamut Salad with Green Beans, Rosemary, Cardamom, Harissa Almonds and Green Onion,

This grain salad is perfect for winter days, when you find citrus, especially the red ruby red blood oranges or pink grapefruits in the shops. I layered the salad with kamut, a delicious, chewy ancient grain, rich in nutrients and nutty flavour. You can easily substitute kamut for farro, spelt, barley or other grains.

Recipe and Photography By Nina Olsson

Adding grains to a salad creates more satisfaction and energy to a lunch or dinner. I’ve been making plenty of winter salads between my warm and comforting meals this year. And if you think grains are boring think again! Sturdier grains like kamut are easily toasted before cooking, adding extra flavour and interest to a whole salad. I’ve written about kamut, also called Khorasan wheat in my latest book Grains + Greens. It’s rich in both fatty acids and protein, and perhaps more interestingly, kamut has been found in Egyptian tombs, which I think is a very entertaining thought, that it once was the food of the pharaohs. This simple salad is delicious and full of goodness. I serve it a sharing or side salad. You add white beans, chickpeas or lentils to make the salad a complete main meal. Here’s how to make it.

Instructions
Put the kamut and rosemary and a generous pinch of salt with a few drops of olive oil. Toast the grains while stirring until fragrant. Add 250ml water or stock in a cooking pot and bring to the boil. Lower the temperature to a simmer and cook for 1 hour ( 20-30 minutes if using pearled kamut). If you chose a different grain, adjust the cooking instructions accordingly).

While the grains are cooking: Remove the peel and sequester the citrus into bite size pieces. Mix the olive oil with with balsamic vinegar, cardamom and harissa and set aside.

Add the green beans to a boiling cooking pot with water and let it cook for 2 minutes. Reserve a tablespoon of the cooking water. Remove and rinse immediately with ice cold water. Drain and set aside. Toast the almonds until fragrant in a pan and set aside. Chop or crush the almonds when they have cooled a bit.

Drain the grains and transfer to a big bowl. Toss the green beans, grains, onion with the harissa olive oil. taste and adjust with salt. Add beans or lentils if you opted for that. Layer the Salad with citrus and top with toasted almonds and spoons of tahini yogurt.

Serves 2

75g whole grain kamut, pre-soaked for 1 hour, rinsed (can be substituted for other grains)
250 water or vegetable stock
1 teaspoon, dried or fresh finely chopped rosemary or thyme
salt to taste
a few drops of olive oil
2 blood oranges or pink grapefruit or other seasonal citrus fruit
100g green beans (haricot vert), or other fresh greens such asparagus, roughly chopped
a handful of toasted organic almonds, crushed or chopped
2 green onions, sliced, using both the green and white parts
1 ½ tablespoon extra virgin olive oil plus an extra drizzle
1 ½ teaspoon harissa paste (can be substituted with another mild chili paste)
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
⅓teaspoon ground cardamom
Salt to taste

Tahini Yogurt (see recipe for the Levantine Feast)
extra chilli flakes for finish (optional)

Optional: add white beans, or lentils or chickpeas to make this salad an extra balanced and filling meal.

Vegan and gluten-free notes

VE Use vegan yogurt.
GF Kamut is not gluten-free, use a gluten-free grain instead. Sorghum or buckwheat is a great choice, you can also use, millet or quinoa, for a less chewy texture.

Ceramic: We’re using our own ceramic bowl. in this picture. You can find it for sale in the webshop.