Roast Beet Salad with Orange Raspberry Balsamic Vinaigrette

I?ve had friends swear they hate beets with the fiery passion of a thousand suns (I might be embellishing ? just a little). And nothing brings me more happiness than to make those friends eat their words ? and they did, after trying my roast beet salad. I?m pretty sure it?s more because of the dressing, but their plates were wiped clean in the end. Whatever gets the job done?

Roast Beet Salad Ingredients:- 4 medium-sized Beets (Fresh beets are a must. Canned beets are flavorless and disgusting.)
- 1 Orange
- Mixed greens or endive (to cover the bottom of the dish)
- Crumbled Gorgonzola cheese or Blue cheese
- Candied Pecans

Preparation:How to roast beets: Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees F. Rinse beets to remove any dirt or debris. Wrap each beet securely in tin foil and place on a cookie sheet. Put the cookie sheet in the oven and roast the beets for 45 minutes (1 hour if the beets are large). Remove the beets from the oven and let them cool for at least 1 hour. Unwrap the beets and peel off the skins. I would suggest wearing rubber gloves to do this so that your hands don?t get stained. If you don?t have rubber gloves, you may want to peel each beet under running water. Beet skins should come off easily.

Slice each beet into eighths. Peel skin off the orange. Slice the orange into 4 quarters. Put one orange slice aside for the dressing. Take each orange wedge and slice into ½ inch thick pieces. Rinse and dry the mixed greens or endive. Line each salad dish with greens and place beets and oranges atop. Add the candied pecans and sprinkle the gorgonzola/blue cheese crumbles evenly over each plate.

Orange Raspberry Balsamic Dressing Ingredients:- ¼ cup Raspberry-Balsamic vinegar
- ¼ cup Blood Orange-infused olive oil (preferred, but regular olive oil works too)
- 1 Tbs. Champagne mustard (or honey mustard)
- 1 Tbs. Fresh Orange Juice

Preparation:In a small Tupperware dish, combine ingredients. Seal the dish with a lid (air-tight) and shake vigorously.

Drizzle the dressing over each salad dish. Voilà la! Your roast beet salad is ready to serve!

Enjoy!