Red Beets with Blood Orange, Feta, and Wild Arugula
I am finally starting to feel the seasons change, as the air cools and fall settles in. The season for peaches and figs has passed and we are moving into winter squash, apples, and citrus. It is always wonderful when you are greeted with new ingredients to play around with. Beets, blood oranges, and arugula made their way into my market bag and are the perfect ingredients for a bright fall salad. Paired with a little creamy feta and some sprouted salt and pepper walnuts, this salad is both beautiful and delicious.
RED BEETS WITH BLOOD ORANGE, FETA, AND WILD ARUGULA
Serves 4
2 pounds red beets, trimmed and washed
1/2 cup sprouted salt and pepper walnuts
2 blood oranges
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons orange juice (I used Navel oranges)
zest of 1/2 orange
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup crumbled goat feta
1/4 lb wild arugula, washed and dried
sea salt
freshly cracked black pepper
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Trim and wash the beets. Loosely wrap them in tin foil, adding a splash of water. Place the tin foil pouch onto a baking sheet and roast the beets for 45 minutes or until they can be easily pierced with a fork. Once the beets are done roasting, remove them from the oven and set aside to cool.
With a sharp paring knife, trim off the top and bottom of each blood orange. Pare off the rest of the peel from the sides of the blood oranges, removing all the pith. Carefully, remove wedge sections from the orange and set aside in a bowl.
In a separate bowl, place the vinegar, orange juice, zest. While whisking, slowly drizzle in the olive oil and continue whisking until dressing is emulsified. Season with salt and pepper. If it is too acidic, you can add a little honey to mellow it out.
Once the beets have cooled, rub the skin off of them and slice them into small wedges. Toss in a small bowl with some of the vinaigrette to coat.
In a large bowl, toss the arugula with the vinaigrette to lightly coat.
To assemble the salad, place a small amount of arugula on the plate. Top with a few beets, orange wedges, walnuts, crumbled feta, and a sprinkle of sea salt and black pepper. Continue building each salad in this way until all the ingredients are used up.
Finish each salad with a drizzle of vinaigrette and serve immediately.
Enjoy!
What are sprouted walnuts