Sunday, August 14, 2011

Roasted Beet and Goat Cheese Salad

I bought these lovely beets at the farmer’s market the other day.


Aren’t they pretty! I decided to make one of my favourite salads, roasted beet and goat cheese, with arugula and toasted pine nuts. 


If this salad is on the menu at a restaurant I always order it! I love it. I have never tried to make it at home, but when I saw these beets I thought I would give it a whirl.
It was amazing and way easier than I thought it would be.

Here is what you need,

1 batch of my Favorite Salad Dressing
1 package of baby arugula
1 package of goat cheese
3 tbsp pine nuts, toasted
4-6 medium sized beets, any color

First start by roasting the beets. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with tinfoil. Trim the tops and bottoms off each beet and wash any dirt off with cool water.
Wrap each beet tightly in a large piece of tinfoil and place on the baking sheet.
Roast for 40-60 minutes or until the beets are tender. I test mine by poking them with a sharp knife, if it slides in easily they are cooked. When they are done pull them out of the oven and carefully unwrap each beet and let it cool. Once the beets have cooled completely you can peel them, the skin comes off really easily, just use a sharp knife to pull it off.
Slice beets into rounds and set aside.

Next, make a batch of salad dressing. Toast the pine nuts over medium low heat in a dry pan. Be sure to watch them the whole time it only takes a second before they burn! 


To assemble the salad, place a few beet rounds on a plate. Dress the arugula with the salad dressing, toss gently. Pile a bunch of arugula on top of the beets. Place a few dots of goat cheese around the plate and top with a few pine nuts.


That is it! A fancy salad that tastes amazing!
Now that I know I can make this at home I will be making it often!

Jen

5 comments:

  1. Okay this looks sooo good! I love goat cheese, and beets make me happy too! I'll have to try this one out with Dad!! Thanks for another great idea!

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  2. Oh, Jen, you have lost me with this one. Beets and goat cheese? Yikes. Those might be my two least favorite things in the world. Your photos are simply beautiful though. I'm tempted to try it just because it's so lovely! Are roasted beets a different taste from the standard cooked or boiled or steamed beets? I don't think I've tried them that way.

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  3. Hey Mary, Sadly if you don't like beets this isn't the salad for you! The roasted beets basically taste the same as any other beet. I love the sweetness of the beets with the tangy creaminess of the goat cheese. You should try beets again if you haven't in a long time, they are really great, try the yellow or golden ones they tend to have more sweetness to them!

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  4. Beets can be sweet?! Obviously, I haven't been trying the right ones. I think I'll have my brother bring me some from the farm when they are ready. Maybe I'll give beets another try this year. I don't even remember the last time I tried them.

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  5. I can attest to how AWESOME this salad is, as Jen brought it over to my house for dinner on Saturday. I could have eaten about 5 servings. It was the best part of the meal! (And gorgeous photos, Jen!)

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