This Beet Salad with Goat Cheese is the recipe that changed my mind about beets. The combination of roasted beets, toasted almonds slices, creamy goat cheese and just a hint of garlic and olive oil complement each other so well that you crave another bite.
Have you ever tried golden beets?
Golden beets are my absolute favorite beet variety. I like to refer to them as my “gateway” beet. Now I grow them and they are the prized possession in my garden.
They have a mild, less-earthy flavor which pairs great with the almonds and goat cheese in this recipe. I roasted both red and golden beets for this beet salad, but feel free to use one or the other or both!
Easy Trick to Peel Whole Roasted Beets
After removing from the oven, take a dry paper towel and wrap the beet.
Squeeze both side of the beet and rub off the skin with the paper towel.
The beets should pop right out nice and clean. Any spots that remain, just rub a little harder or scrape off with a knife.
How to make this Beet Salad with Goat Cheese
Step 1: Roast Beets.
See this post for step-by-step instructions on roasting + peeling beets.
Step 2: Toast almonds.
Step 3: Prepare beet greens.
Nothing goes to waste in this beet salad recipe. If you’ve selected beets with the greens attached, simply trim the stems and sauté them with olive oil and garlic. Just as you would spinach. They are a healthy addition to serve alongside this salad.
Step 4: Combine beets, greens, goat cheese and almonds.
Drizzle with honey, if desired.
I recently brought this salad to a dinner. Shortly after we started eating, one of my friends declared that she didn’t think she liked beets, but that this Beet Salad with Goat Cheese is excellent. I’d have to agree with her. Enjoy and eat healthy!
Warm roasted beets paired with sliced almonds and goat cheese for a classic beet salad everyone will enjoy!
- 1 bunch fresh organic red or golden beets with good quality leaves intact usually a bunch is 3 medium beets
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
- 4 cloves minced garlic
- 4 ounces crumbled goat cheese
- 2/3 cup sliced almonds lightly toasted
- a drizzle of honey optional
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Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
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Cut been greens off the root leaving about 2" attached. (if you purchased beets earlier in the week, you should take this step as soon as you return from the grocery store and wrap separately for storage).
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Wash and pat roots and leaves dry.
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Grab a sheet of foil large enough to wrap the 3 beets together. Lay it flat and put beets on top in the middle. Drizzle about 1 tbs of olive oil on the beets, rub with oil to coat and season with salt and pepper. Seal up the foil tightly and place on a baking sheet or pan for about 60 minutes to roast. The beets will be done when pierced easily with a fork all the way through.
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Prep the greens and almonds while you wait for the beets.
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Chop the greens into bite size pieces discarding the entire center stem portion.
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Toast the sliced almonds in a pan on the stovetop over medium heat. This only takes a few minutes, so as soon as they start turning slightly golden, remove them from the heat and place in a bowl.
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Once the beets are done, let them cool for 10 minutes while you finish the greens.
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In a large skillet add 1 tbs of olive oil and the minced garlic. Heat garlic on low until it is fragrant - about 1-2 min. Add the leaves and stir around to coat. They will cook down fairly quickly like spinach would - 5 min.
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The beets should be cool enough to handle with a paper towel now. Chop off the top stem and using a dry paper towel, wrap and squeeze the beet and the skin should slide right off onto the towel.
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Dice the beets. Lay them on top of a serving of beet greens. Finish off with goat cheese, toasted almonds and salt and pepper to taste. Add a drizzle of honey if you'd like!
Recipe inspired by Thekitchn.com. A suggestion is made there to use this salad as the inner workings of a pressed sandwich with extra goat cheese. I think this is a wonderful idea!
*I often feel like there are never enough beet greens to go around. In this case, grab some spinach and use this as an alternative or addition to your greens.
*If you use red and golden beets as I have here. You must roast and store them separately otherwise the red beets will color your entire bunch red.
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