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celebratedliving.com
FALL 2012
SMALL BEETS
WITHTHEIRGREENSAND LEMON-SHALLOTVINAIGRETTE
Serves 4
It would be a shame to lose the charm of these small, heirloom beets to a soup or a
salad of finely dicedmixed beets. That’swhat large beets are for. I love these
smaller beets steamed, the skins removed, halved or quartered, then
pairedwith their (cooked) greens, black olives, white cheese, and
dressedwith a lemony vinaigrette. Add steamed carrots aswell and
you have a stunning salad.
INGREDIENTS
6 each small golden and Chioggia beetswith their greens
1 tablespoonfinely diced shallot
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon plus 1 tablespoon juice
3/8
teaspoon sea salt and freshly ground pepper
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
8 kalamata olives
Crumbled feta cheese, goat cheese, or sliced ricotta salata, to taste
1. Leave an inch of the stems on the beets and all of the tails.Wash
them thoroughly, then steam over simmeringwater until they’re tender
when piercedwith a paring knife but still offer a little resistance. For
small beets, 25minutes should be long enough.
2. Slice the remainder of the stems from the base of the leaves. Sort
through the leaves, discard any that are yellowed or badly torn, and
wash the rest. Cook them in a pot with thewater clinging in their
leaves plus an extra¼ cup, covered, until wilted and tender, about
6minutes in all. Set them in a colander to drainwhile youmake the
dressing and peel the beets.
3. Tomake the vinaigrette: In a small bowl, mix the shallot with the lemon
zest, juice, and salt. Let stand for 5minutes, thenwhisk in the oil.
4. Topeel the beets, gently squeeze the skins from themwith your hands. If they
don’t come off readily, peel them carefullywith a knife. Cut them inhalf (cut larger
ones inquarters). Dress the beet greenswithhalf the vinaigrette. Taste for salt, then
loosely arrange themon a platter. Dress the beets, taste for salt, and scatter them
over the greens. Seasonwithpepper. Add the olives and cheese, then serve.
