Roasted Beet Goat Cheese Salad (Printer-friendly)
Sweet roasted beets combined with creamy goat cheese, crunchy walnuts, and mixed greens dressed in tangy vinaigrette.
# What You’ll Need:
→ Vegetables
01 - 4 medium beets, trimmed and scrubbed
02 - 4 cups mixed salad greens (arugula, spinach, or baby lettuces)
→ Dairy
03 - 3.5 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
→ Nuts
04 - 1/2 cup walnuts, roughly chopped
→ Dressing
05 - 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
06 - 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
07 - 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
08 - 1 teaspoon honey
09 - Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
# How to Make It:
01 - Preheat the oven to 400°F. Wrap each beet individually in aluminum foil and place on a baking sheet. Roast for 40 to 50 minutes or until tender when pierced with a fork. Allow to cool, then peel and slice into wedges.
02 - While the beets roast, toast the walnuts in a dry skillet over medium heat for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring frequently until fragrant. Remove from heat and set aside.
03 - In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, balsamic vinegar, Dijon mustard, honey, salt, and freshly ground black pepper until emulsified.
04 - Arrange mixed salad greens on a serving plate or divide among individual plates. Top with roasted beet wedges, crumbled goat cheese, and toasted walnuts.
05 - Drizzle the prepared dressing over the salad immediately before serving.
# Expert Tips:
01 -
- It's the kind of salad that looks like you spent hours in the kitchen when you really just roasted some vegetables and toasted some nuts.
- The sweet-tangy-creamy-crunchy thing happening all at once is genuinely addictive and works for lunch or dinner.
- You can make the components ahead and assemble it fresh whenever you want, which means less stress when people are actually arriving.
02 -
- Do not dress the salad too far in advance or your greens will wilt and turn sad; keep the dressing separate until the absolute last second.
- The contrast between warm beets and cool greens is actually part of the magic, so don't overthink trying to make everything the same temperature.
03 -
- If your beets stain your hands purple, rub them on something acidic like a lemon or tomato and the color washes right off—learned that the hard way.
- Taste your dressing before you pour it on because vinegars and oils vary wildly in intensity, and there's nothing worse than an over-dressed salad that you can't fix.