…one of the things I love about the random recipes food challenge is not just the discovery of a new dish or revisiting an old book that you’d perhaps forgotten about but rather the chance introduction to trying something you already love, in a new way. We all get into habits and routines but as any good cook will tell you, knowledge about food is often passed on from discovery… be it from a friend or colleague or a book and it’s that simple spark of fact, that little pearl of wisdom that can transform a good dish into a great dish.
… all my life i’ve hated beetroot, that nasty pickled stuff you were forced to eat on a salad as a child but when I discovered that they came raw, in bunches and you could roast them like a potato which would bring out a rich, earthy quality well, I fell instantly in love and have been roasting them to my delight ever since but upon reading the recipe for Avocado and Beet Salad on page 66 of Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, who suggests sprinkling the zest of an orange over the roasted beetroots, it’s like i’ve fallen in love all over again…
avocado and roast beetroot salad
there really is very little to this salad but i’m so glad I picked it for this month’s challenge which I am running in conjunction with the AlphaBakes challenge, hosted by Caroline from Caroline Makes and Ros from The More Than Occasional Baker… this month’s letter is A and so I randomly selected a recipe under the A index in the back of the book… you still have until April 26th to get your recipes in to the challenge, the rules of which can be found here.
1 large avocados
1 bunch of raw beetroot – unpeeled
olive oil
salt and pepper
the zest of one orange
a dash of cider vinegar
a bag of mixed salad leaves to garnish
trim the beetroot and cut into quarters, place on a baking tray and drizzle with plenty of olive oil and season well – roast on 130C for 40 mins, then turn off the oven and leave to cool – set aside till ready to use, they will keep in the fridge for about 3 days
open a bag of salad and place onto a large flat bowl
cut up an avocado and lay it out onto the salad, followed by pieces of the roasted beetroot
sprinkle with more salt, grate over some orange zest and drizzle over a little cider vinegar and plenty of olive oil
eat and of course, enjoy!
This looks delicious Dom, I could pluck it off the screen and dive right in
Very nice, colorful and healthy!!
I made this for tea
Bloody great
That looks amazing! I too thought I didn't like beetroot until I had it non-pickled. Roasted beetroot is the best & I love the idea of pairing it with creamy avocado! x
Wow that looks really tasty. I love avocado and I love beetroot so I'm definitely giving this a go especially as it's coming up so salad season. Thanks for entering AlphaBakes – a pleasure to join up with Random Recipes this month.
What a great idea!
this looks so good and love the textures
Ahhhhhhhh (please note 'A'), I thought this was gorgeous when I saw it on Instagram, but now I've read the recipe I love it even more. Have you seen Bittman's book 'Vegan Before 6'? I've read a lot about it, but when I twigged it meant no butter in the mornings, I went off the idea somewhat. Must rattle my dags (there's a special Kiwi-ism, just for you) for RR this month…
Thanks Jane. So simple yet so tasty!
Thanks Catherine. Yes, love that it looks good whilst being so healthy!
Nice work John! Glad you liked it.
Isn't it amazing how wonderful roasted beetroot is so much unlike the nasty pickled stuff. Thanks for the comment.
Pleasure as always Ros x
Thanks Mr P
Oh Rebecca it is great
I see what you did there Lucy! Thanks for the comment and yes, get your skates on!
Oh yes Dom, this is beautiful – both in looks and I suspect in taste. I've just used up the last of our beetroot in some muffins and now rather wish I'd checked this out first. Trouble is CT doesn't like beetroot. I can disguise it in muffins and cakes, but in a salad like this he would definitely baulk. One for me alone I think. Just putting finishing touches to my RR post.
Stunning salad Dom! Love the beautiful colour contrast from the avocado and roasted beetroot. I suspect the flavour combination is a stunner as well. Nice one Dom, as always!
Lovely combination – I would never have thought of putting beets with avocado – perfection!
Mary
Love the idea of orange on the beetroot, I adore the stuff even pickled! Looks delicious!
So simple yet packed with loud favour and texture x
Nothing better than roasted beetroot, totally with you on this one how much better are they than the tinned version. Actually two of my favourites together beetroot and avocado. Simple but perfect.
I love how this looks. Just visually, that dark beetroot and the bright green avo.
The colors of this salad is a feast for the eyes too. Looks fantastic.
In my adult life I've come to love beets.
I love the colors of your dish.
I love the colours and the combination of flavours, great idea
I've just come across this, you forgot to actually send it to me for our joint challenge! Luckily I am a bit late doing the roundup so I'm checking yours to see if I have missed any out, there were a few people who forgot to email both of us!