An elegant berry salad that’s incredibly easy to make and incredibly big on flavor. Colorful with raspberries, blackberries and arugula. Caramelized Onions and Chanterelle Mushrooms turn this salad from ordinary to exotic.
There’s so much to love about this salad. Peppery arugula is a perfect base for sweet plump berries.
Caramelized onions, warm from the pan and sauteed chanterelle mushrooms are absolutely alluring with flavor. And did I mention crazy healthy?
The vinaigrette is so very simple, using just olive oil, red wine vinegar and Dijon mustard. Perfect.
A couple slices of your favorite cheddar cheese and this salad will impress.
To compliment the greens and dressing, I chose a slice of cheddar that had small bits of cranberries instead. It sounded so very seasonal. Any type of white cheddar cheese will be lovely with this salad.
And if watercress is available, this would be a lovely substitute for arugula.
About Chanterelle Mushrooms
Magical in appearance, their wavy caps are fleshy in texture and are pleasantly aromatic. Chanterelles grow about everywhere, their North American season being from April to September. They can also be grown commercially in greenhouses.
Chanterelle mushrooms are absolutely stunning in color. Exotic and golden, I don’t know how anyone can resist buying them when they’re available in our markets.
The fact is they’re very expensive and you simply may not know what to do with them. I paid $17 a pound for these, but with two of us, 1/2 pound was worth the cost for this beautiful salad.
If you’re looking for chanterelle mushrooms recipes, this is a very easy way to use them. Thank you Food and Wine Magazine for this elegant and easy side salad recipe.
How To Cook Chanterelle Mushrooms
Mushrooms are natural sponges so I don’t like rinsing them with water. It changes the texture. Use a paper towel to wipe down the outside of the mushrooms. Also check in between the folds under the cap for any dirt or debris. Chanterelle mushrooms depend on tree trunks and roots to grow.
Slice off the wide bases from the chanterelles. At this point you can leave them whole or slice them. Just saute them in olive oil or butter until they are tender and just starting to crisp in places. That’s it.
You can add them to salads, like this arugula salad, risotto, or as a topping on steaks.
If you can only find dried chanterelle mushrooms, just soak them in water for a couple of hours. They will cook beautifully sautéed in butter for a few minutes.
How To Make This Berry Salad with Warm Chanterelles and Arugula
So easy:
- Clean the chanterelle mushrooms with a paper towel. Cut off the wide ends of the larger mushrooms, slice and set aside.
- Slice the sweet onions 1/4 inch thick.
- Heat a saucepan over medium high heat. When the pan is hot, 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Add onions and cook for 5 – 6 minutes or until they’re turning golden. Remove to a large bowl and set aside.
- Add 3 more tablespoons of olive oil (butter would work nicely here). Once the olive oil is hot, add the mushrooms. Turn the heat down to medium. Cook mushrooms, stirring often until they start to turn crispy on the edges. About 5 – 7 minutes.
- In the meantime in a small bowl whisk the dressing ingredients together.
- Add berries, arugula, warm mushrooms to the bowl with the onions. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss.
- Add sliced cheese to 4 salad plates. Divide the salad between the 4 plates and serve immediately.
Recipe for Berry Salad with Warm Chanterelles
I hope you give this beautiful side salad a try, and if you do, please come back and give the recipe a star rating. And leave a message about your experience with the recipe.
And if you have a favorite berry salad recipe or chanterelles mushrooms recipes, let me know, I’d love to give them a try.
What to serve with Warm Chanterelle and Berry Salad
This side salad recipe would be a beautiful starter for:
- Grilled Ribeye Steaks with Spicy Mustard
- Classic Chicken Fricassee
- Dijon and Pistachio Crusted Rack of Lamb
- Spicy Creamy Shrimp Pasta Recipe
And if you’re salad fans like us, don’t miss my post on 9 Secrets To A Remarkable Tossed Salad. A step by step guide on how to make the best tossed salad ever.
Warm Chanterelle and Berry Salad with Cheddar
Ingredients
- 7 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil plus 1 teaspoon, divided
- 1 small sweet onion sliced into 1/4-inch-thick rings
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
- 3/4 pound chanterelle mushrooms stems trimmed and large mushrooms halved or sliced. Hedgehog mushrooms are also good here.
- 1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 3 cups baby arugula
- 1 cup blackberries
- 1 cup raspberries
- Four 2-ounce pieces of cheddar cheese your favorite. Specialty cheddar preferred.
Instructions
- In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoon of olive oil until shimmering. Add the onion rings, season with salt and pepper and cook over high heat until richly browned, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer the onion rings to a medium bowl.
- Add 3 tablespoons of the olive oil to the skillet and when it is hot, add the chanterelles and season with salt and pepper. Cook over moderate heat until the liquid in the skillet has evaporated, about 5 minutes. Continue to cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until the chanterelles are browned, about 5 minutes longer. Season with salt and pepper.
- In a small bowl, combine the vinegar with the mustard and the remaining 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon of olive oil. Season the vinaigrette with salt and pepper. Add the arugula, blackberries and raspberries to the bowl with the onions. Add the chanterelles and the vinaigrette and toss well. Put a piece of cheddar on each plate. Divide the salad among the plates and serve.
Nutrition
Warm Chanterelle and Berry Salad with Cheddar…It’s What’s For Salad
I’ve recently been searching all about for this post. Happily I just noticed it in Google.
This is a beautiful salad! Combining fruit with salad greens is always such a flavor packed dish. So glad you found my Pioneer Woman fan blogsite. Looking forward to seeing what you post!
Thanks Debby and thanks for stopping by
That looks totally incredible! Just the thought of warm chanterelles sounds amazing.
Lucky you can probably pick them fresh out of your back yard! 🙂 Thanks for stopping by Cathy.
That sounds fantastic and great job devising your own recipe! 😀 That cheddar with cranberries sounds intriguing!
Thanks for stopping by Lorraine. That cheese is very good. I was in Whole Foods yesterday and they still have a heaping display of it.
What fun to have a new treat to create with! I don’t think I have had chantarelles before. Love that salad especially!
Thanks Natashya and thanks for stopping by
oh wow love your blog thanks for visiting what a beautiful and healthy salad, will follow along Rebecca
Thanks so much Rebeccca and thanks for stopping by.
I make bean dip, and you go all gourmet on me! Salad looked great, and I love that chowder…
LOL BD, I have my moments. That dip of yours looked great! Thanks for stopping by.
Cheddar with cranberries!!! Oh my god that sounds good. I need to find some of that.
This is definitely a great use of the dried mushrooms. A delicious AND nutritious salad – what could be better?
My Whole Foods had a pick-up truck full of that cheese. It wasn’t very expensive either. Thanks for stopping by JoAnne
Whoa. What a cool salad. The berries with the mushrooms with the arugula with the cheese… I’m in.
However, I’d have paired it with a big hunk of meat. Uh, I mean, like a beef something or other with this and that on whatchacall it.
(until you make me that peach ice cream, this isn’t going to be easy)
I would have usually paired it with a big hunk of meat….but I’m trying to behave this week.
You’ll get your peach ice cream when you start your blog.
Sounds like a fabulous dinner! I love soup and salad and am always looking for something “off the beaten path”…. this is on my list to try…. and who says you’re not good at creating…. look at this salad!!
Thanks!
Thanks Linda and thanks for stopping by
What a fantastic sounding salad!!! The mushrooms, cheddar, berries, perfect unique combination. Beautifully plated as well!
Thank you so much Donna – and as always thanks for stopping by
That salad looks beautiful . . . there are only about 3 or 4 ingredients that I might have trouble finding up here. 😀 Meanwhile, the corn chowdah looks divine! I’m making that for Dana this weekend.
Really great post – LOVE the photography (loved the dishes)!
What??? No onions in Montana??? Ha. That salad plate is my favorite. I have a collection of several fine china salad plates that I use all together and placed on plain white plates. I’ll blog about that one of these days.
I am a freebie whore, I love these little surprises… and this creation of yours is fabulous what a great lunch
good for you
LOL, me too. Thanks for stopping by YOG
Two great dishes. We have a mushroom place here in town that I really need to go visit, called Everything Mushrooms.
Where do you find raspberries this time of year?
I want an “Everything Mushrooms” in Denver! Can you encourage them to franchise?
Thanks for stopping by Chris