This Roasted Root Vegetable Salad is a perfect salad for fall or winter. Persimmons, pomegranate, turnip, rutabaga, parsnips & carrots make it a meal in itself!
I love the sweetness of roasted root vegetables and I had never tried persimmons.
This is a wonderful winter salad – winter because persimmons are usually only available in Ontario in early winter. You will want to make this when persimmons are in season. Americans may be able serve it with their Thanksgiving meal as well.
There are 2 kinds of persimmons commonly available in North America- astringent and non-astringent. Because of this difference you need to know which one your recipe calls for and which one you are buying.
The Hachiya persimmon (astringent) is heart-shaped and is very high in tannins and unpalatable until fully, fully ripened. Once they are soft and ripe they become very sweet and delectable. You can accelerate ripening by storing them in a paper bag to capture the ethylene gasses that ripen the fruit. Adding apples, pears or bananas to the bag will also help accelerate the ripening process.
Fuyu persimmons (non-astringent) are more tomato shaped and a bit more forgiving. They still have tannins but they are much softer. Fuyus can be consumed while still firm or softened.
This salad calls for Fuyus. It is an interesting combination of bitter/sweet. The sweetness of the vegetables and vinaigrette are offset by the slight bitterness of the endives and frisée lettuce. I loved this salad the way the recipe is written but some people are a bit averse to sweet wines or foods. In that case I would suggest using a semi-dry Riesling in the dressing instead of the ice wine.
Update Nov 15, 2016
I just made this salad again with using Vanilla Persimmon. They are a strain from Spain and are work beautifully in this salad. I had forgotten how good it is – and pretty too!
You can either arrange it on a platter or toss it in a bowl!
| Prep Time | 35 minutes |
| Cook Time | 1 hour |
| Passive Time | 30 minutes |
| Servings |
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- 1 1/2 pounds rutabagas peeled and cut to 1" dice
- 1 1/2 pounds parnsips peeled and cut to 1" dice
- 1 1/2 pounds turnips peeled and cut to 1" dice
- 3 large carrots peeled and cut to 1" dice
- 1/2 cup plus 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- salt and freshly ground pepper
- 2 medium shallots thinly sliced
- 5 Tbsps sweet white wine I used Riesling Ice wine but a semi dry Riesling would also work
- 3 Tbsps white wine vinegar
- 1 1/2 tsps thyme chopped
- 3 Fuyu Persimmons cut into 1" dice
- 3 oz Frisee lettuce torn
- 2 Belgian endives cored and sliced crosswise 1/2 inch thick
- 1/2 cup pomegranate seeds
Ingredients
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- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Toss the rutabagas, parsnips, turnips and carrots with 3 Tbsp oil and spread evenly on a large rimmed baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper.
- Bake about 1 hour until just tender. Stir occasionally. Cool.
- Heat the remaining 6 Tbsp olive oil in a small skillet and saute shallots over medium heat about 6 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl to cool. Stir in wine, vinegar and thyme. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Add the roasted vegetables, persimmons, frisee and endives to the dressing and toss well.
- Transfer to a platter to serve and sprinkle with pomegranate seeds.
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