Ingredients / Equipment:

• 3 medium beets

• 1/2 avocado, sliced

• 1/4 red onion, sliced

• 2 medium pieces of citrus (we used tangelos) peeled and sliced into rings

• cheese of your choice (we used goat cheese)

• 2 sprigs of mint

• 1/4 cup nuts of your choice (we used pistachios)

• 2 TBSP EVOO (for beets) 1/4 cup EVOO (for dressing)

• 1 TBSP agave

• Juice of 1/2 lemon

• 1 tsp dill

• garlic powder

• salt + pepper to taste

• 3 beet stems, chopped

• foil

• paper towels

• serving plate

• Rimmed baking sheet

Instructions:

For Beets:

Pre-heat your oven to 375 degrees. Wash your beets and dry them well. Coat your beets in 2 TBSP of EVOO and wrap all together in foil. Place them on your baking sheet and bake for 45-60 minutes depending on the size of your beets.

Once ready, pull beets out of the oven and let cool enough so you can handle them, but still warm to the touch. Grab a couple paper towels and begin to rub the skin of the beets right off. If cooked properly, this should be fairly easy.

For dressing:

Put olive oil, agave, lemon juice, dill, garlic powder and salt and pepper in a small bowl and whisk together until combined.

Plating:

We are going to make a gorgeous layered dish here! Have fun and be creative, as long as all the ingredients make it to the plate, you’re good! I’ll let you know in what order we plated— Place citrus rings on the bottom of your plate. Next, top with beets. Place avocado on top next followed by red onion. Sprinkle your goat cheese and pistachios on top. Neatly place some mint leaves throughout the dish. Top it with your dressing, your beet stems (don’t they look like pomegranate seeds?) and a little fresh cracked pepper!

Modifications:

Have fun with this recipe. You can use almost any citrus! If using something like a grapefruit, I’d go a little heavier on the agave in the dressing. You can use any kind of nut or seed you’d like too! Pumpkin seeds, walnuts, sunflower— options are endless! This salad while beautiful and delicate looking, is super versatile. You can get creative with your cheeses and use a white cheddar or even a blue cheese! The acidity of the dressing and the mint and dill really tie it all together.

Enjoy!