OK, let me start by saying that this salad looks absolutely nothing like what I had in mind.
For some reason, I’d imagined that there would be more of a contrast between the color of the sweet potato and that of the golden beets.
Maybe if I had steamed the beets instead of roasting them, they’d have kept more of a golden color, but really, they came out of the oven almost as bright an orange color as the sweet potato did.
Oh well, live and learn. And I was so excited about this too. It was the first time that I had ever gotten my hands on some golden beets. (Hey, don’t laugh. I haven’t always been a foodie, you know, especially not one of the healthy kind!)
Guess I’ll have to buy more, now. And come up with a different idea for a nice contrast.
Mind you, all color issues aside, this was a very good salad still. My son even had some, and liked it, despite hating sweet potatoes. (I’m starting to wonder if maybe I shouldn’t worry about him… this is weird. First the Fettuccine Alfredo and now this! 
)
Now, this salad does require a little bit of planning ahead of time, as you will need to roast your beets and sweet potato the previous day in order for them to have time to completely cool before they go into the salad.
But apart from that, this is a salad that comes together really quickly. What’s really great about it is that it could very well be enjoyed any season, really
! I’ll have to try it next summer with grilled beets and potatoes. Must be really yummy!
Well, that’s if I can get my hands on the golden beets in the summertime!
But for now, I need to work on that contrast issue…
SWEET POTATO AND GOLDEN BEET SALAD
INGREDIENTS
(Serves 2)
- 1 large sweet potato, roasted and cooled
- 8 small golden beets, roasted and cooled
- ½ radicchio, shredded
- 1 celery rib, thinly sliced
- ½ cup fresh parsley, chopped
- 40g toasted hazelnuts, chopped
- 2 tbsp pumpkin seeds
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp unpasteurized honey
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- Preheat the oven to 400F
- Brush the beets and potato under running water. Cut off the ends of the beets and cut them into four pieces. The sweet potato you will want to cut into four pieces also, but lengthwise.
- Place the vegetables in a roasting pan, add about ¼ cup of water at the bottom of the pan, cover with foil and bake in the oven for 30 to 35 minutes, until fork tender but still a bit on the firm side. You don’t want to overcook the vegetables, for you want them to hold their shape when you cut them into smaller pieces.
- Let the veggies cool for a while and transfer to the fridge to cool completely, ideally overnight.
- Take your beets and sweet potato out of the fridge. Use a small paring knife to remove the skin and cut them into 1″ to 1½” pieces.
- Transfer that to a large mixing bowl
- Add the rest of the ingredients and gently toss everything to combine well.
- You can serve this salad immediately or let the flavors develop in the fridge for a couple for hours, or even overnight.
- Garnish with more pumpkin seeds when serving, if desired.
Wow, the golden beets are so pretty! Don’t worry, I’ve never had them before either! They look so good though – I am a huge fan of beets. I love the nuts and seeds mixed into your salad – looks yummy
Thank you Heidi. That makes me feel better! I felt a bit silly when I bought the beets and realized that I’d never had them before in my life. Mind you, there are many more ingredients like that that I’ve never tried, but none quite as common as a beet though. I really like their color, and I especially appreciate the fact that they don’t stain everything they come in contact with, like the purple variety… Glad you like the salad too! I also am a great fan of beets, so I particularly enjoyed that one.
This sounds wonderful and so colourful!
This looks so good, especially with with the nuts and fresh herbs in there too! I’m a huge fan of beets, but I’ve only tried the golden ones once or twice…I found that I didn’t like the taste as much as purple beets, so I tend to just stick with the regular ones!
I totally agree, the taste of the golden variety is a tad more subtle. The great advantage that they have, however, is that they don’t stain. Don’t get me wrong, I love the deep purple colour of regular beets, but sometimes, I find that when I use them in certain dishes, they just turn everything purple and that is not always desirable. They might look very good in this salad, though. Nice contrast between the deep purple and the bright orange of the sweet potatoes. I’ll have to try it someday.
Thats true…not only do they stain the entire dish, but my kitchen also looks like a crime scene every time I cook with beets… I’ll find purple spots high up on my cupboards or on the walls the next day – no place is safe! I do love the colour though!
Mmm this looks sooo good! I love golden beets and sweet potatoes. I wish I was this creative.
Hehe! Rhiannon! So cool to see you here. Thank you so much for your lovely comment. And everything will look even better after you’re done putting YOUR creative touch to this place! And what do you mean, you wish you were that creative? You are way more creative than I am, only in a different field!
Thanks a bunch for dropping by, I truly appreciate that!
Oh, I got your email, by the way. I’ll try and get back to you tomorrow!