Roasted Beet Salad with Whipped Goat Cheese and Maple Balsamic Dressing

When I was in California back in June I had the pleasure to eat at Chef Tyler Florence's San Francisco restaurant Wayfare Tavern. It was a fantastic meal -- the starters, avocado salad and bacon-wrapped dates, were particularly memorable as were the popovers -- and one that has inspired me to try a few new things in the kitchen since getting back.

Up until a few years ago I was a beet hater. Probably because of the fuschia-tinted pickled variety I was used to growing up, a mainstay at family dinners (I think my grandpa was the only one who liked them). But I recall having a roasted beet salad at a downtown restaurant and realizing just how delicious a beet could be -- earthy and sweet, slightly warm, and dressed with a simple citrus vinaigrette. I think there must have been some goat cheese in there as well, because beets and goat cheese are genius together.

Penne With Herbed Zucchini And Goat Cheese

Don't you love it when a recipe far exceeds your expectations? It doesn't happen often, to me at least, but when it does it's so satisfying. I've cooked zucchini countless times. I've tried to like it, I really have. But the end result has always been the same. Bland. Watery. Blah. Not so with this dish, from a 1997 issue of Gourmet, dug up on Epicurious.

My reason for cooking this was simple -- I had the handful of items it required on hand. And I should say right now that with recipes that have so few ingredients -- six, in this case -- the quality of said ingredients is paramount. I had the best of the best -- local zucchini bought a few days ago at a farmers' market, top notch dried pasta, herbs snipped from my balcony pots, and Monforte goat cheese -- and the dish was all the better for it.

Red Beet Risotto with Mustard Greens and Goat Cheese

Bored of the same old thing, I've been experimenting with different vegetables lately. I'm fortunate enough to live near one of the best markets in the world, so why continually buy green beans and cucumber when there's so much else to choose from? Lately I've cooked recipes with celeriac (which I adore), Jerusalem artichokes (also wonderful), and a few days ago I made a winter salad with Belgian endive and radicchio -- both of which I've used before but never together in a salad. It's been one food epiphany after another, which is quite a feat in the dead of winter.

When one of my Twitter followers suggested recently that I try mustard greens, I couldn't resist. I initially thought salad, but then I came across this recipe and knew I had to try it. Not only because the mustard greens are left raw but because beets and goat cheese are among my favourite flavour combos.

While chopping up the mustard greens I tried some, and wow, the name could not be more appropriate. They have a piquant Dijon mustard quality about them that's unexpected but so good. I was planning to use the leftovers in a salad with Dijon vinaigrette but now I think that'd be mustard overload. Perhaps something with less bite, such as a creamy buttermilk dressing, would work better.

But, I digress. The risotto. Much to my delight, this wasn't a heavy, stodgy risotto at all, on the contrary it was light, creamy, and flavourful. A variety of textures, from the softness of the goat cheese, to the slight bite of the beets and rice, to the crispness of the greens. And the beet juice infuses the risotto with a delightful ruby hue, very photogenic.

Though I had this as a main course, you could easily serve it as a side as well. I think you'll like it!

Red Beet Risotto with Mustard Greens and Goat Cheese
Bon Appetit | February 2007

Ingredients:

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter
2 (2 1/2- to 3-inch-diameter) beets, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 1/2 cups chopped white onion
1 cup Arborio rice or medium-grain white rice
3 cups low-salt chicken broth or vegetable broth
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 1/2 cups chopped mustard greens
1 (5 1/2-ounce) package chilled soft fresh goat cheese, coarsely crumbled

Melt butter in heavy large saucepan over medium heat.

Add beets and onion. Cover; cook until onion is soft, about 8 minutes.

Mix in rice. Add broth and vinegar. Increase heat; bring to boil.

Reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer uncovered until rice and beets are just tender and risotto is creamy, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes.

Season with salt and pepper.

Spoon into shallow bowls. Sprinkle with greens and cheese and serve.

Serves six

*I found this recipe on epicurious, and in the notes it was suggested that you could replace the goat cheese with Parmesan if desired. I personally love the combination of beets and goat cheese so I left the recipe as is.

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Roasted beet and goat cheese salad with orange vinaigrette

I roasted beets for the first time last summer and the results were a revelation. Sweet, tender, and nothing like the over-vinegared jarred ones I remember from childhood. They pair incredibly well with tangy goat cheese, so tonight I made a salad with those two ingredients as the base.



I added some spring greens, chopped walnuts for crunch, and a homemade orange vinaigrette (homemade salad dressings are so much better than bottled and they're a snap to whip up). I'm not one for making a meal of a salad, but if the ingredients are interesting enough, and filling enough, it can be pretty satisfying. This one filled me up nicely.

Roasted beet and goat cheese salad with orange vinaigrette

4 medium sized beets, roasted*, peeled and chopped
1 navel orange
bagged spring greens (or buy in bulk, enough for about 2 cups worth per serving)
1 small log of goat cheese
1 cup chopped walnuts
1/3 cup olive oil
1 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
Salt and pepper

*Roasting beets: wrap cleaned beets in foil, then place on a baking sheet. Roast in 375F oven for about an hour. Beets are done when you can easily pierce them with a knife. Wearing rubber gloves, peel skins off beets and slice.

Make vinaigrette by first zesting the orange and putting zest in a Mason jar. Then halve the orange and using a citrus reamer, squeeze the juice into the jar. Then spoon in the mustard, followed by the olive oil. Add some salt and ground black pepper. Pop the lid on the jar and shake until emulsified. Add more salt and/or pepper if needed.

Clean the salad greens and place in a big bowl for mixing. Add the sliced beets and walnuts to the greens, and mix in the vinaigrette. Use tongs to ensure the dressing is uniformly distributed. You may not need all of the dressing, you don't want the ingredients to be dripping with it. Place in serving bowls and top with chunks of goat cheese.

Serves 4.

Enjoy!

Suzanne