Roasted Beet Salad with Beet Greens, Goat Cheese, and Pistachios
The beauty of roasting food is that it enhances the flavor of most ingredients. And because it is a dry heat, it’s easy to obtain crispy skin on a chicken or perfect caramelization on your vegetables. This practical roasting pan moves from oven to cooktop, allowing you to use only one cooking vessel for the entire recipe.I love the addition of chard with the beet greens to create a room temperature “salad” that can accompany other dishes, but the beets are absolutely delicious on their own with the vinaigrette as well.
Equipment
- 5-6 qt. Roasting pan
Ingredients
- 3 lbs beets, with their greens*
- ½ cup plus 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- Kosher salt
- 4 thyme sprigs
- ¼ cup red wine vinegar
- 2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 1 Tbsp sliced chives
- Freshly ground pepper
- 1 thinly sliced medium red onion
- 1 bunch chard, tough stems removed, sliced into thick ribbons**
- ¼ cup shelled pistachios, lightly toasted and salted
- ½ cup crumbled goat cheese (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Cut two piece of aluminum foil twice as long as the base of the 5 ½ qt. roaster. Place them in the roaster.
- Twist off the beet greens. Rinse the beets and the greens thoroughly to remove any dirt. Remove the leaves from the stems, then slice the stems into 2-in. pieces and the greens into thick ribbons. Set aside.
- Place the beets on the foil and coat with a tablespoon of the olive oil and a teaspoon of kosher salt. Toss the beets to coat with the oil and salt. Sprinkle the thyme sprigs on top. Wrap the beets tightly in the foil, crimping the edges to make a sealed packet so no steam can escape.
- Roast the beets for 1 hour, or until a fork can be inserted into the center of the beets easily, up to 30 minutes longer if necessary.
- While the beets roast, make the vinaigrette. Combine the vinegar, mustard, honey, chives, a couple of pinches of salt and a few grindings of pepper in a mason jar. Place the lid on it and shake to combine. (Alternatively, place the ingredients in a mixing bowl and whisk to combine.) Add the remaining ½ cup olive oil and shake again until the vinaigrette is creamy. Taste, adding more salt if needed.
- When the beets are finished roasting, remove the foil packet from the roaster and let the beets cool, uncovered, until they are barely cool enough to handle, about 10-15 minutes. (If the beets become cold, it will be harder to peel them.) Using a small paring knife or a peeler to get started, peel the beets, using gloves if you have them to prevent pink fingers. Often, the peels are easy to remove with your hands when they are still warm.
- Slice the large beets into wedges and small beets in half or quarters. Place the beets in a mixing bowl. Pour ¼ cup of the vinaigrette on the beets and mix, tasting and adding more salt as needed.
- Place the same roaster on the stove and warm 1 tbsp oil over medium heat. Add onion and cook until softened, about 3 minutes, then stir in the beet green stems. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes until softened, then add the beet greens and chard. Season with a pinch of salt and cook, stirring often, until wilted, about 3 minutes. If the greens are tough and need to cook longer, add ¼ cup water and cook until the water has evaporated. Turn off the heat and leave the greens to cool in the pan.
- Drizzle a few more tablespoons of the vinaigrette over the greens and mix, adding more vinaigrette if desired. Serve the beets on top of the greens in the roaster and sprinkle pistachios and goat cheese on top.
- *If you have large and small beets, cook them in two separate foil packets so you can take the small beets out before the large beets are done cooking.
- **If your beets have scrawny greens or no greens, use an extra bunch of chard.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
