My Mom used to make a wonderful beet dish. I remember it having a pickled flavour and she served it with thinly sliced onions. She made everything she cooked look so easy, and I wish that I had her recipe.
I love beets and I have wanted to make something with them for a long time. On a recent weekend trip to my local farmers market I found, farm fresh beautiful beets. I was told that were picked that morning.
I can’t recreate my Mom’s beets but making this beet recipe captures the essence of her cooking.
Ingredients:
2 large beets
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion (thinly sliced and caramelized)
1/4 cup goat cheese
1/4 cup toasted pecans
salt and pepper to taste
Instructions for roasting the beets:
Preheat oven to 400 F.
Remove the stems and leaves from the beets. Wash and dry with paper towel.
Have enough foil to double or triple wrap each beet. Place the foiled wrapped beets on a baking sheet and roast about 60 minutes depending on the size, mine were large.
Wear clean disposable or dish gloves to protect your hands from the colour and heat of the beets. Remove beets from the oven, upwrap each and peel, the skin should come off easily.
Cube the beets, pour the olive oil over and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Gently mix, and put on a baking sheet that has been prepared with a little olive oil.
Turn the heat to 425 F. and roast beets for about 25-30 minutes depending on the size.
Once cooled you can put your salad together. I layered starting with Boston leaf lettuce, topped with roasted beets, caramalized onions, toasted pecans and finishing with a sprinkling of feta cheese.
Tips:
Prepare yourself unless you like the colour red on your clothes, counter and cutting board. I used gloves when handling the beets, covered my counter with newspaper and my boards with parchment paper.
Add your favourite herbs and spices when roasting.
Serve the roasted beets as a side or main dish with or without the lettuce.
Can be enjoyed warm or cold.
