Roasting Beets

Along with all the other produce mom hauled south to us was a bread bag stuffed with baby beets from her garden.  I am not a huge beet fan, but I had a roasted beet and goat cheese salad in Taos that converted me a bit.  Since she had brought so many, I decided to try to reinvent this salad for dinner last night.  It was pretty simple to make and assemble and it turns out so pretty.

Roasted Beet Salad with Goat Cheese, Carrots, and Toasted Pecans

1 pound baby beets
1 rosemary sprig, about 3 inches
1/4 c. extra virgin olive oil
1/2 t. fine sea salt
1/4 t. fresh ground pepper
2 T. Champagne vinegar
1/2 t. Dijon mustard
1/2 t. Agave nectar
Salt and pepper to taste
5 oz. organic mixed baby greens
4 oz. goat cheese, sliced into rounds
1/2 c. shredded carrots
1/4 c. toasted pecan halves

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Scrub and wash beets.  Cut off the leafy greens, but leave about an inch of the stems. 

Beets ready for roasting.

Place beets in a single layer in a 14 x 9 baking dish with rosemary sprig.  Toss with oil, sea salt and pepper. 

Cover with foil and seal as tightly as possible.  Place in oven and roast until tender, about 50 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool.  Keep covered.  When they are cool enough to handle, slip off the skins and cut off the remaining tops.   Pour the remaining oil and beet juices from the roasting pan and reserve for salad dressing (about 1/3 cup.)  Set aside beets for salad. 

 
 
 
 

Salad dressing ingredients

 

 For salad dressing, add reserved olive oil and beet juices from roasting pan.  If it does not equal 1/3 cup, add enough olive oil to top it off.  Whisk in vinegar, mustard, and Agave nectar.  Season to taste and set aside.

 To assemble salad, distribute greens onto four plates.  Arrange beets and goat cheese rounds.  Top with carrots and pecans.  Drizzle about 1/2  tablespoon of dressing on each plate. 

Serve.  Makes four entree portions.


Beet

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