Recipe: Roasted Beet & Arugula Salad

If you don't like beets, no worries! It is just because you haven't had them like this! When I was interning at the Greenbrier, we had a salad similar for a week or so. I had to roast so many beets that it literally took me a good 2 hours of prepping them plus the hour long cooking time.... sometimes more! Luckily, you won't be spending a few hours on this yum salad.

Baby beets are grown year around. The vibrant colors and sweetness of the beets and blood oranges in this salad are accentuated by the creamy-white feta and crunchy nuts. Feel free to substitute baby mixed greens, mache, or frisee for the arugula. Fresh goat cheese works jsut s nicely as feta. In fact, the farmer's market usually has it, and you can taste the difference! No comparison! If you can't find baby beets, the larger ones will do fine. Just take a little longer to roast.

Roasted Beet & Arugula Salad- Serving: Yields 4 (as side salad)

Ingredients:
- 1 # Roasted Baby Beets at Room Temp.
- 1/3 c. Orange Walnut Vinaigrette or Walnut Balsamic Vinaigrette (see below)
- 6 c. Baby Arugula, carefully rinsed and dried
- 2 Blood Oranges or Naval Oranges, segmented
- 1/4 c. Crumbled Feta Cheese
- 1/2 c. Spiced Candied Walnuts or if it's fam dinner just toast the walnuts for a few minutes

Method Of Preparation:

1. Cut the beets in half or quarters so that they are bite size. Place beets in a small bowl, add 1 to 2 Tbsp. of the vinaigrette, and toss until the beets are coated. Can be done in advance if desired.

2. Jusst before serving, place arugula in a large salad bowl. Add about 3 Tbsp. of vinaigrette. Toss to lightly coat the arugula, then taste to see if it needs more.

3. Transfer the argula to individual plates/platter. Arrange the beets, orange segments, sprinkle feta on top and walnuts over them. Serve immediately.

This is a great salad to do a couple times that week. Roast beets ahead of time, and you have a great snack. Serve the salad twice to the family, and so it really was worth your while!

Orange Walnut Vinaigrette- Makes about 1 1/4 c.

Ingredients:
- 1/2 c. Good Quality Walnut Oil
- 1/4 c. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 Tbps. Fresh Orange Juice or Blood Orange Juice
- 1 Tsp. Finely Grated Orange Zest*
- 5 Tbsp. Sherry Vinegar
- 2 Tsp. Dijon Mustard
- 1 Tbsp. Finely Minced Shallots
- 1/4 Tsp. Salt
- 1/4 Tsp. Fresh Black Pepper

*Do a little extra zest and use it on some asian chicken... Try making your own marinade with garlic, orange zest, ginger, soy, and bourbon for later that week. Serve extra orange segments for before dinner or a snack for you!

Method of Preparation:
1. Place all ingredients in a glass jar and seal the lid tightly. Shake the jar vigorously to combine. I say this a great way for the kids to get involved. I typically like to do fresh dressing before I start on dinner itself, so that it has time to sit and let the flavors intermingle. Save left over dressing and store in the fridge for up to 1 month!

If you see things on the ingredients list that you know your family won't eat or get near. Or you thing that buying a couple ingredients will go bad in your house, e-mail me so we can figure out how you can personalize it to you! Happy cooking everyone!