Roasted Beet and Goat Cheese Stacked Salad

I hated beets.  That's right, I hated them.  They taste funny, they look funny, they smell funny.  I did not want to be friends with them.  I did not want them to come over for dinner.  But my friend Kim loves them and I have not been posting much about veggies lately so I thought I would give them a chance and dedicate this post to Kim.  Off to the store I went to find beets.  Oh man, I forgot how truly ugly they are.  Their roots look like the tail of a rat!  I couldn't possibly eat these.  I mean honestly - look at those things.  They look like aliens or something!

As I am not one to give up on a challenge I decided to bring those little aliens home and do some research.  About 15 food blogs later it seemed like roasting them was the best idea to bring out some flavor and sweetness.  I saw a lot of recipes that tossed them with orange segments and sherry so I decided to include both of those flavors.  Finally I decided on a little bit of goat cheese and some micro-greens to bring it all together.

So here went nothing.  I peeled and roasted the beets and then spent 20 minutes washing the beet stains off my hands.  They came out of the oven smelling... could it be? smelling... delicious.  A small and timid bite later I was converted... a beet lover in fact.  I cannot get enough of this salad!  Seriously you're lucky there are pictures I wolfed down about 2/3 of the recipe before I even got started.  The beets are sweet and the roasting gives them a nice caramelized taste.  The dressing is prefect and goes great with both the spicy greens and the sweet beets.  Finally the tangy goat cheese adds nice texture and the perfect rounded taste.  And thus the beet, goat cheese, and micro-green salad was born.  The recipe for this roasted beet and goat cheese salad is super easy and can be made in advance and be served the next day.

Roasted Beet and Goat Cheese Stacked Salad

Ingredients

yields 2-3 salads

1 batch roasted beets, cooled (recipe below)

1/2 cup micro-greens or arugula

4 oz log fresh goat cheese

1 batch orange sherry vinaigrette (recipe below)

Directions

1) Toss the micro-greens or arugula in the dressing.  Slice the goat cheese log into small disks about 1/4 inch thick.  Layer the salad on small serving plates.  Beet, cheese, greens, beet, cheese, greens, beet.

2) Drizzle any additional dressing on top of the salad and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Roasted Beet Recipe

Ingredients

3 large beets, peeled, and cut into 1/2 slices

2 T. olive oil

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. pepper

1 t. fresh thyme leaves

Directions

1) Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees.

2) Clean and peel beets (careful they can dye your clothes so be sure to wear an apron or something you are keen on replacing soon!).  Slice the beets into 1/2 inch slices.  Toss beets with the olive oil, salt, pepper, and thyme.

3) Arrange beets on a pan and place in the oven for 20-25 minutes.  Turning 2 times half way through (don't use your favorite white spatula though - unless you want it to become your favorite pink spatula!).  You will know the beets are done when they are tender to the touch.

4) Remove beets from oven and allow to cool.  You can stop here and place them in the refrigerator overnight if you like and make the rest of the salad just before serving.

Orange-Sherry Vinaigrette

Ingredients

2 T. fresh squeezed orange juice (about 1/2 an orange)

1 T. sherry vinegar

1/4 t. salt

1/4 t. pepper

1/2 t. fresh thyme leaves

1 T. finely minced shallots (about 1/2 small shallot)

2 T. olive oil

Directions

1) Place all ingredients except the olive oil in a bowl and whisk to combine.

2) Whisk the in the olive oil.  You can add more to your liking if you prefer your dressings on the less acidic side.  Try adding an additional 1/2 tablespoon at a time up to 2 more tablespoons.  Add additional salt and pepper to taste.

**You can make a double batch of this and keep it around - I really love it drizzled on about any veggie, especially asparagus and green beans.