ROASTED BEET, PEAR & WALNUT SALAD

By Jeanine Donofrio: CAMILLE STYLES From Yummly

I’m so thrilled to introduce our newest contributor Jeanine Donofrio and her new series In Season. Twice a month, she’ll be stopping by to share a healthy, delicious recipe inspired by one seasonal ingredient picked up from the farmer’s market. I’ve been a huge fan of Jeanine’s blog Love & Lemons for a while: it’s one of those rare sites that does much more than show beautifully-photographed food – I actually want to make everything that Jeanine creates! The fact that she happens to be a fellow Austinite is icing on the cake, and I can’t wait to see the gorgeous edibles she cooks up for this series. Without further ado…

“This was a love salad, great flavor and texture” – Kathleen Cannon:

14 Ingredients
340 Calories
65Minutes

Ingredients
USMETRIC
SERVINGS:
4
3 beets (medium sized, any variety, I used a mix of red and golden beets)
olive oil
beets
1 pear (ripe, chopped into 1/2 inch pieces)
1/4 cup walnuts (toasted)
1/4 cup feta cheese (crumbled, or more)
3 handfuls salad greens (your choice)
1/2 cup cooked quinoa (optional, for a heartier salad)
sprouts (micro, for garnish, also optional)
2 tablespoons walnut oil
balsamic vinegar (a drizzle of)
honey (a drizzle of)
salt
pepper

Thanks Camille! I’m thrilled to be here!

I’ve been such a fan so I was excited when Camille asked me to lunch a few weeks ago. We not only ordered the same dish (Tofu Bun from Elizabeth St. Cafe), but we chatted about how we share almost identical tastes in food… from sweet potatoes to arugula… peaches to okra… and just about every seasonable vegetable in between.

But today, let’s talk about beets, shall we? A hearty root vegetable, they’re available pretty much all year round, but they’re best June through October. I picked up some gorgeous ones at our farmers market last week and decided they would go perfectly with some ripening pears that were sitting on my countertop. To balance all of the sweetness I added some tangy feta and toasty walnuts.

This would be great as a starter for a fall dinner party. I also make salads like this to have on hand for my weekday lunches. This one will keep for a couple of days in the fridge and it’s one of those salads that actually tastes a little bit better the second day. (although note that it won’t be prettier the second day).

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit. Roast the beets by drizzling them with a bit of olive oil, some salt and pepper, and wrapping them in foil. Depending on the size and freshness of your beets, they should take from 40 minutes to 1 hour to roast in the oven. Check occasionally, when they are fork-tender they are done. Set them aside to cool… as soon as they’re cool enough to touch, run them under the faucet and slide off the skins with your hands. Chop into roughly 1/2 inch cubes and set them aside to cool completely. (To save time, I suggest doing this up to one day ahead of time and popping them in the fridge until you’re ready to assemble the salad).

(optional step) Take the already-cooked quinoa and toast it a little, by tossing it in a small hot skillet for a couple of minutes. Drizzle a little walnut oil and some salt on it, and remove from the heat and set aside. If you’re not familiar with how to cook quinoa, I like this method.

Assemble all salad ingredients on a platter. Drizzle with a liberal amount of walnut oil, a bit of balsamic vinegar, a little honey, and some salt and pepper. (or for a cleaner look, toss the balsamic only with the red beets, before assembling the salad).

IMAGES:
photos by Love & Lemons

For more on this story go to: https://camillestyles.com/food-and-drink/in-season-roasted-beet-pear-walnut-salad/?utm_campaign=yummly&utm_medium=yummly&utm_source=yummly