I have been dreaming up a salad in my head for a while. I mentioned it to Chef Lij and he was willing to go on the wild side with me. In fact, he encouraged it and took my very rough idea and refined it into this salad that was so winter-meet-spring-fresh that we had to fight hard to restrain ourselves in the tasting sessions.
As a child, the only way my mother could get me to have beets is as a juice with another vegetable. As far as I was concerned, beets tasted like dirt. So, beets were never big on my agenda. I grew to tolerate a pickled beet salad in some 20 years later, but I found the same old recipe replicated in several different buffets. I got bored again. It wasn’t until I got married to a man who was excited to work with what I considered balls of red dirt, that I began to give beets the respect they are due. Packed with the wonderful goodness of nature, beets are more versatile than we think. We recently made Beet Oatmeal to add some variety to colourless beige oatmeal and sneak some more nutrition. Here is our newest recipe that we have developed that will make you a lover of that red ball of earth.
Ingredients: 1 small beet for every apple, apple cider vinegar, light olive oil, ground allspice, salt and pepper, fresh mint.
After washing and drying beets, use a paring knife and pierce holes all over each beet. Remember to snip off the little rough part that was attached to the leaves.
Rub whole unpeeled beets with oil, salt, pepper and ground allspice. Cover in foil and place in the oven at 130C until cooked. The knife will pierce without resistance when cooked. Cooking time will vary according to the amount of beets you are roasting. 500g/1lb of beets should roast in 30mins-45mins.
Allow beets to coo then peel. But feel free to peel them hot if you have fingers of steel.
Dice them into small squares
Slice apples in round, then stack the rounds to julienne into long strips. Slice those strips in the opposite direction to dice.
Add about 1 Tbsp apple cider per apple used in the recipe to the apples in a bowl.
Combine the beets. Add about 1 tsp of oil per apple used in the recipe. Tear a few mint leaves and combine. Add the mint sparingly because you do not want it to overpower the other flavours. Add salt and pepper to taste. Toss again. Garnish with fresh mint sprigs and serve.
CHEF’S NOTE: This is a great side salad for a barbecue and can be made ahead of time. One of the major mistakes we make with beets is that we boil them. Yes they cook quicker, but when boiled, you lose the sweetness of the dates and the texture changes as it gets water-logged. Refrain from boiling beets unless you are simply using them in a purée. Roasting them in the oven is a better alternative though it is more time-consuming. However, If you want to convert your family into beet lovers, it is worth the wait!
Next post, another great beet recipe that will make you walk past those canned pickled beets in the supermarket forever!
I love roasted beets. What a great combo, thanks a lot.
Thank you!
this looks delicious, we are beet fans at home eventhough we only have one recipe UNTIL NOW!! I’m sending this to my mother and we’ll most certainly try it this xmas when I go back home…btw, lovely photography and blog design that make your creations the focal point!!
Wonderful! I know how it feels to be stuck with one beet recipe. We have just added another for you to enjoy!
Thanks!!!
This looks great and we have all the ingredients here now.
I’ve always loved beets, but I was never really a fan of apples! This might actually get me to eat the apples that we keep buying but rarely use up. 🙂
Julie, now this is a spin! Interesting that you have always loved beets! I think I know why you may not favour these apples… after all those Otaheiti apples in Jamaica are simply divine!
What a beautiful salad! I roasted grape tomatoes yesterday for the first time and thought I was really into something. I will work my way up to beets.
Sandra, it is charming that you are now in a savoury roasting frenzy since we know your oven is well-used for your delicious sweet treats!
This is great, i have never made beets this way before and i love them! I will try it your way soon.. c
Cecilia, thank you for taking our word for it and trying it a new way. Your willingness to go there with us is why we write this blog. Be sure to come back and tell us us what you think of it.
Such a gorgeous salad with those beet jewels and apples! It looks delish!
PS…if I haven’t told you before, I LOVE your logo.
Thank you so much Liz! Means a lot to us.
This salad is worth trying! Can not wait to taste the combination of Apple and roast beets!
You will be delighted! We promise 🙂
This is fabulous!!! I love it and will be added to my favourite recipes NOW!! love the pics Kari, very fresh and mouthwatering 🙂 well done
Thank you Dima. I wanted to showcase beets in all their glory— juicy bright orbs of deliciousness and not the waterlogged, pale stuff we get from them when we boil them. They are really so healthy and yes, the mint adds a fresh, cool note.
Of course, many people still have bad feelings for beets, but that’s only because they haven’t had them done well. They are delicious! Great pairing, and it’s nice that you kept them in square chunks like that. Lots of crunch!
Agreed that treatment is as important as the ingredient. Chef Lij is pretty serious about his mise en place… he makes dicing, chopping, slicing etc works of art!
I don’t like beets but after reading your post, I’ll definitely give it a try. Your salad looks yummy! Who knows, I might end up becoming a beet lover.
We think you will definitely have a new place for beets when you make this- on a pedestal. Let us know how you like it!
Woo-hoo, you’re in Today’s Top 9 Congratulations!
This is lovely!I have never tried anything like this before. I do have an apple and a beet in my fridge right now – so maybe I’ll give this a try tomorrow morning:) Lovely recipe, lovely presentation – and loved meeting you!
Sudha, thank you for visiting and allowing us to take you on a new culinary journey. Trying new things definitely makes the kitchen and dining table the best spots of the home year-round!
I’ll be making this for Thanksgiving this year – signed up for a veggie side, and this is perfect! Thank you 🙂
Krista, Love that you have found the perfect side dish for your Thanksgiving 🙂
This looks like a great side dish for the holidays. Such lovely colors!
Kristi, it is indeed perfect for the holidays from Thanksgiving straight through to Hannuka, Kwaanza and the New Year! Festive, light and bright!
i like this!!!!
Thanks Madelyn!
I always hated beets growing up too. I totally would have agreed with your ‘balls of red dirt’ feeling. Now, I love beets!! And, this salad besides looking so pretty sounds delicious!
Beth, we have yet another thing in common 🙂 Thanks… it does engage you on a double-whammy of looking AND tasting great!
Do you know, I ONLY like beets roasted!?!? Paired with lovely apple (and perhaps some goat cheese)… amazing!
Tiffany, you are not alone in that regard. Adding goat cheese would could it a lovely vegetarian meal indeed, though we think it is sensational as is!
I love beets and apples together! Especially if you add a little goat cheese. Salad looks delish!
I LOVE that dirt taste. Just embrace it. It is the flavor of nourishment.