Roasted Sweet Potato Rice Salad with Cherries and Toasted Hazelnuts

” Summer afternoon, summer afternoon, to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language.”  Henry James

This scrumptious grain salad is bursting with the taste of summer:  sweet cherries, scallions, roasted corn and tons of herbs plucked straight from the garden.  It has complex layers of flavor and texture, can be made in advance and will hold up well on summer buffet tables.  Gorgeous colors make it tantalizing to the eyes as well.   It is versatile in that the kind of grains, nuts or herbs used can be swapped for what you have on hand.  It makes a heaping bowl, perfect for summer entertaining.

• Servings: 12
• Time: 1 hr
• Difficulty: easy
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4 c of cooked whole grains(I used a wild and brown rice mixture but farro, couscous, quinoa, orzo would all be good)

3 sweet potatoes, diced roughly

1 large sweet onion, chopped roughly

4 T olive oil, divided

zest and juice of 1 large or 2 small limes

4 scallions, sliced on the diagonal

1 and 1/2 c roasted corn kernels( I used  frozen, thawed)

1 and 1/2 c of pitted fresh sweet cherries(about 30)

pinch of saffron

3 T each of fresh herbs:  chopped mint, chopped parsley, chopped tarragon

1 and 1/2 t ground cumin

1 t ground cinnamon

salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 F.  On a lined shallow pan, on the lowest level, toss the sweet potato and onion in 2 T of oil.  Spread on the pan and roast for 35 minutes, stirring a few times to prevent burning.

In a large serving bowl, toss your grain with the saffron, corn, 2 T of oil and the juice and zest of the lime.  Add the sweet potatoes, onion, scallions, herbs, cinnamon, cumin, salt and pepper and toss.   Top with the cherries and hazelnuts.

Sweet potatoes and onions ready to be roasted

This is where the magic happens: lime, scallions, fresh cherries, saffron, tarragon, mint , parsley and toasted hazelnuts will make this salad rock.

All the ingredients except the cherries and nuts, tossed together.

The finished salad. YUM!

Woman with Cherries, Georges Lemmen, 1905, Antwerpen Royal Museum of Fine Arts, Belgium