Makes 4 servings
This stunning salad takes a little longer than normal to prepare, but enjoying a special dish in Jan. 2021 is a much-deserved pleasure.
1 pound small red and yellow beets, about 8, greens removed, roots scrubbed
Water
Almond Brittle (recipe follows)
6 tablespoons Tangerine Vinaigrette (recipe follows)
6 ounces red butter lettuce, torn
2 ounces baby arugula
2 or 3 winter citrus (tangerine, mandarin, blood orange, pink grapefruit), peeled and cut in segments
Almond Brittle:
Makes a baking tray-full
1 cup sliced almonds
½ brown rice syrup
Tangerine Vinaigrette:
Makes ½ cup
Tangerine juice makes for a wonderfully sweet dressing that goes perfectly with this salad. Honey and Minneola tangerines are uniquely sweet.
1/3 cup tangerine juice
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar, white balsamic vinegar or brown rice vinegar
1 tablespoon EVOO
½ teaspoon unrefined sea salt
Pepper, freshly ground
1. Pressure cook, boil, or oven roast whole beets. To pressure cook, add 1 cup water to pressure cook until tender, about 20 minutes. To boil, be sure beets remain covered in water as long as it takes, about 40 minutes. To oven roast beets, set oven to 450°. Line a small casserole dish with parchment paper, add whole beets, cover and place in oven to roast until tender, about 60 minutes from a cold start.
2. When cool enough to handle, slip off skins, retaining a little of the tails, and slice beets lengthwise in quarters or eighths to display the beautiful insides.
3. To prepare Almond Brittle, lightly toast nuts at 300° until they taste good, about 10 minutes. Mix nuts with brown rice syrup. Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet, one layer thick. (Press out with moistened fingertips.) Bake until sweetener bubbles vigorously and turns golden brown around the edges, about 15 minutes. Transfer to cooling rack. When cooled, brittle will break off easily.
4. To make vinaigrette, mix ingredients well.
5. To serve, layer greens in salad plates or bowls. Top with colorful beets and citrus slices. Dress to serve. Tuck nut brittle pieces in at edges of salads.
For 4 servings, per serving:
Calories: 226 Protein: 4gm Saturated Fat: 0.4gm Fiber: 8gm Carbohydrates: 42gm Fat: 4gm Cholesterol: 0 Sodium: 244mg
Calories from Protein: 8% Calories from Fats: 18% Calories from Carbohydrates: 74%