The weather is unseasonably warm and it’s putting us in the mood for summer salads. When I saw the next recipe up in Carla’s book Fusion of Food and Friends was “Beet” the Summer Heat Salad, I thought it couldn’t come at a more perfect time.
- 3 medium red beets with the tops trimmed but skin on (*I couldn’t get the fresh beets and used canned, nothing added, whole beets)
- * 1 fennel bulb, sliced. This is my addition and not part of Carla’s recipe.
- 1/3 cup chili oil – make your own by adding 1 TBS red pepper flakes to olive oil as follows: Heat a fry pan and add pepper flakes then oil. When the oil begins to heat, turn off and let cool.
- 1 TBS white vinegar
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup gorgonzola cheese (optional) – crumble
- 1 cup fresh arugula (optional) – I used spinach but would have LOVED the arugula!
Preheat oven to 400 F.
In foil, wrap the beets in foil tightly, put in a baking pan and roast for 45 minutes or until tender. Unwrap and cool to room temperature, then place in fridge for 1 hour. Note: I wrapped my fennel slices in foil and roasted for 40 minutes, allowed to cool then proceeded with the recipe. I didn’t roast the canned beets. If you use fresh beets, and it IS suggested, simply roast the fennel slices with the beets.
Peel the beets, keep intact. Cut into 1/4 inch thick slices. Arrange on a platter and drizzle with salt and pepper to taste along with vinegar and chili oil as desired. Sprinkle with gorgonzola cheese and arugula (or spinach).
We enjoyed the flavor of fennel with this salad.
Of course we wouldn’t think of serving it without the gorgo!
Superb!
Your salad looks great. Sometimes it’s hard for me to eat them in winter but with the combination of both raw and cooked and leafy greens and roots, I think I could do this one.