Eating healthily has never been tastier than this Roast Beetroot Salad served with fetta, rocket, pine nuts with a honey mustard dressing.
The modest beetroot
Fresh beetroots (or beets) are one of those things I never stop to look at when I am in the veggie section of the supermarket. I mistakenly thought that beetroots were messy to prepare and hard to cook. For some weird reason, I thought beetroot would bleed like crazy when sliced open.
The only beetroot I’m familiar with is the ones in a can. The ones that are sliced, pickled and can ruin a good shirt if not careful. I actually love having beetroot this way. There’s always a can of beetroot in the corner of my pantry somewhere.
Sliced beetroot brings sandwiches and burgers to life, just like it did to this fully loaded AUSSIE BURGER WITH THE LOT
My husband, Tomasi, saw a bunch of beets laying on our kitchen bench. ‘What are you planning to make with those awful things?’ he asked. Needless to say, he loathes beetroots. ‘Bacon, egg and beetroot rolls because they’ve gone viral’ I answered sarcastically, knowing that he would get annoyed with me. The first two ingredients are his favourites.
Nope, I didn’t make that bacon egg and beetroot roll, but I made this awesome roasted beetroot salad. When I first made this salad, it pleasantly surprised me how tasty it turned out. Fresh beetroot will regularly be in my shopping basket from now on.
Roast beetroot tastes sweet and earthy, and not as harsh as canned ones. I tossed the beetroot with baby rocket and its dressing. The dressing has honey, wholegrain mustard, honey and extra virgin oil. To add more yumminess and texture to the salad, I roasted pine nuts for the crunch and aroma and threw on some salty, tangy fetta cheese.
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2 years ago felt like yesterday
Now that our toddler, Kai, is 2 years old, Tomasi and I can take turns seeing our friends again. Kai was born in November 2019, just before the pandemic struck. Unfortunately, because of this, many of our friends and family missed out on seeing him as a baby.
The last time I saw my friend Vika was when I was heavily pregnant with Kobe. We met at our previous finance job, where she was working as Team Leader. We are both no longer working there, but she’s still in finance. Meanwhile, here I am with a recipe blog and being a full-time mum to Kai.
We caught up for a Sunday lunch at a preppy restaurant nearby. As usual, something would go wrong every time we met up. Most times, the train wasn’t running. Although we both drive, we always catch the train, so we can enjoy a few glasses of wine and cocktails together. This time, it the raining like crazy. By the time we arrive at the restaurant, we were both soaking wet.
We ordered half a dozen of oysters with finger lime and vinegarette. They were utterly divine but unfortunately, that ended there! Our Alaskan crab gnocchi was awful, it was soggy and there was no sign of any crab. The confit pork belly was nice and tender but lacked flavour and texture.
Regardless of the disappointment in our dishes, we still had a great time catching up. She bought Kai a toy Santa that sings and dances loudly to ‘Jingle bell rock’. It played by itself a few times at the restaurant from under our table. Let’s say we got plenty of weird looks from the tables near us.
Beetroot and its health benefits
When health fanatics started labelling it beetroot a superfood, my ears pricked up. Why haven’t I spent quality time with these modest veggies? Eating healthy is so much easier when I’m eating the foods, and I love canned beetroot. So it would make sense that I would love fresh beetroot just as much.
You can eat loads of beetroots feeling no guilt, as they’re low in fat and calories. They’re also rich in folate, which is great for women who are trying to conceive. It’s also known to low blood pressure and improve endurance levels. With all this goodness, it’s no wonder they’re included in the elite superfood group.
After reading this, you probably want to add beetroot to your next shopping list. The good news is they’re affordable and mostly available all year round.
We can eat beetroot raw by slicing them thinly or by grating them. When raw, they are quite coarse and dry in texture and a little bitter. You could also steam, boil and add beetroot to fruit smoothies.
Beetroot hater Tomasi reluctantly tried my beetroot salad, but when he did, it shocked him how much he enjoyed it.
Ingredients for Roast Beetroot Salad
Beetroot – You’ll need around 3 to 4 medium-size beetroot for this recipe. Wash them in cold water and dab them dry with a clean tea towel. There’s no need to peel them before roasting because once they’re roasted, their peel slips off easily. I leave them on after roasting as beetroot peels aren’t unpleasant taste-wise.
Crumbed fetta – If you’re unable to find crumbed fetta you can make your own by grating firm fetta or pulse it in a food processor for a few seconds.
Pine nuts – To get that beautiful nutty roasted flavour, I purchase raw (natural) pine nuts and dry roast them in a frying pan. This quick step is definitely worth doing as roasted pine nuts bring so much flavour to the salad.
Baby rocket (arugula) – or swap with baby spinach for a milder taste without bitterness.
How to make Roast Beetroot Salad
Step-by-step guide with photos
Preheat oven to 220°C (430°F) or 200°C (390°F) for fan-forced ovens. Line a tray with baking paper (parchment paper)
Wash the beetroots and pat dry with a clean tea towel. Cut the ends and tops of each beetroot then cut them in half. Roughly cut the beetroot into 2cm (.8in) wedges.
Place the beetroot wedges in a large bowl. Add in the oil, salt and toss to combine. On a single layer, place the beetroot on the tray. Roast for 25 to 30 minutes or until you can push a skewer through the beetroot with little pressure.
Whilst the beetroot is roasting, prepare the dressing and roast the pine nuts. For the pine nuts – Heat a small pan over medium to high heat, add in the pine nuts and stir regularly until they’re fragrant and darker. For the dressing – In a small bowl, add in all the dressing ingredients and mix well to combine. Have a taste and add more salt or pepper if needed.
Plate up the Roast Beetroot Salad
Place in the roast beetroot on a large serving platter or bowl. Mix in the rocket and half of the dressing (stir the dressing prior). Sprinkle the pine nuts and fetta on top, then use a spoon to add the remaining dressing to the salad.
Looking for some more flavourful healthy dishes? try this unique and delicious Pumpkin Hummus with Prawns and Za’atar or get your tastebuds dancing with Fish with Pineapple Salsa
Cooking measurements are in Australian standard spoon and cup measurements.
A Third-Party Application calculated the calories and nutritional information. Please use this as an approximate guide only.
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Cheers (I’ll drink to that) – Cat Tre
Roast Beetroot Salad
Ingredients
- 1 kg beetroot (NOTE 1)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ cup pine nuts (NOTE 2)
- 1 cup baby rocket (arugula, packed) (NOTE 3)
- ¼ cup crumbed fetta (NOTE 4)
For the dressing
- 2 tsp honey
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tsp wholegrain mustard
- ¼ tsp salt
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 220°C (430°F) or 200°C (390°F) for fan-forced ovens. Line a tray with baking paper (parchment paper). Wash the beetroots and pat dry with a clean tea towel. Cut the ends and tops of each beetroot then cut them in half. Roughly cut the beetroot into 2cm (.8in) wedges.
- Place the beetroot wedges in a large bowl. Add in the oil, salt and toss to combine. On a single layer, place the beetroot on the tray. Roast for 25 to 30 minutes or until you can push a skewer through the beetroot with little pressure.
- Whilst the beetroot is roasting, prepare the dressing and roast the pine nuts. For the pine nuts – Heat a small pan over medium to high heat, add in the pine nuts and stir regularly until they're fragrant and darker.
- For the dressing – In a small bowl, add in all the dressing ingredients and mix well to combine. Have a taste and add more salt or pepper if needed.
- Place in the roast beetroot on a large serving platter or bowl. Mix in the rocket and half of the dressing (stir the dressing prior). Sprinkle the pine nuts and fetta on top, then use a spoon to add the remaining dressing to the salad.
