This Roasted Beet Salad with Goat’s Cheese makes a festive addition to any special gathering or holiday dinner! With the homemade balsamic honey dressing, this tastes like the ultimate gourmet salad.
4-5medium beetsroasted (see this recipe for roasting instructions)
1tablespoonbalsamic vinegar
1tablespoonolive oil
2tablespoonschopped parsley
salt & pepperto taste
Dressing
4tablespoonsolive oil
3tablespoonsbalsamic vinegar
1tablespoonhoney
1tablespoonDijon mustard
½teaspoondried thyme
½teaspoonsalt
ground black pepperto taste
Salad
1(10-oz) bagarugulaOR baby spinach OR mixed baby greens
½cuptoasted pecansroughly chopped
1large applecored and thinly sliced
4ozgoat cheeseOR Feta cheese, crumbled
½cupdried cranberries
⅓cupthinly sliced red onionOR shallot
Instructions
Marinate beets: Peel and dice freshly roasted beets. Place in medium bowl and combine with 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 2 tablespoons chopped parsley and salt & pepper. Place in refrigerator until chilled.
Make dressing: Once beets are ready, make dressing by whisking together all dressing ingredients until smooth.
Assemble: Place salad ingredients in a large salad bowl (see notes if you want to keep cheese from turning pink), add marinated beets and pour over dressing. Gently toss to coat all ingredients with dressing. Serve immediately.
Notes
Ingredient notes
Salad greens: I used a mix of arugula and baby spinach, but pretty much any dark leafy salad greens are delicious here. Baby greens are usually milder and softer, so go for these if you can.
Beets: Roasting your own is easy and delicious, but you can also buy already cooked beets and use them in the salad without losing too much flavor.
Pecans: Walnuts make for a great alternative. Feel free to leave out the nuts entirely if you need to skip them, or replace them with toasted sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds if you tolerate those.
Apple: I prefer to use sweeter Gala apples in this salad. Whatever you decide to use, make sure your apples are firm and crisp.
Red onion: Shallot is a great substitute, or just leave it out if you’re not a fan of onion.
Dried cranberries: I love these in the salad, but they are not a must. Dried cherries are also delicious!
Cheese: Feta cheese or goat’s cheese are my favorite for this salad. But my husband also really enjoys it with blue cheese, so that’s a great way to switch things up if you enjoy the taste of blue cheese.
Dijon mustard: If you don’t keep Dijon mustard on hand, feel free to opt for yellow mustard. The taste is a little different, but still delicious.
Dried thyme: Feel free to leave out the thyme if you don’t keep this in your pantry. Italian seasoning would be a suitable substitute, but will yield a slightly different taste.
Recipe tips
If you’re using pre-cooked beets, just let them sit in the fridge in the balsamic marinade for 15-30 minutes before using in the salad.
To keep the cheese from turning pink, do not add it to the salad bowl with the other ingredients. Instead, sprinkle it on once the salad has been tossed. I only take the time to do this for photos, privately my kids think the pink cheese is the coolest thing ever ?
This makes a large salad for sharing. Make sure you use a very large salad bowl to comfortably hold all of the ingredients. Otherwise you’ll have a hard time tossing it.
Feel free to cut the ingredients in half, or to even quarter the recipe to yield a smaller amount.