I’m a sucker for a good autumn salad. I’ll take hearty greens, roasted root veg, spiced nuts, soft cheese over a tomato-and-cucumber situation any day. Yet I’ve never had a chance to make one for the blog, so when I saw one mentioned in JONATHAN STRANGE & MR. NORRELL, I knew my time had come. Plus, I knew a beet salad would go perfectly with the other dishes I had planned for my Strange & Norrell menu—wigg buns with orange marmalade, a honeyed Cornish hen pot pie, and an opulent dessert I’m keeping secret for now. 😉
I added honey to my roasted beets to tie them in with both the pot pie entree and the vinaigrette I drizzled over the salad at the end (a honey Dijon variation on my go-to vinaigrette recipe). I wanted robust, earthy greens that would hold up to the deep flavor of the beets, so I used some kale and beet greens (never pass up a chance to use edible root veg greens in your salad—turnip greens are amazing too!). For salt and crunch, I included some bacon and toasted pine nuts.
An autumn salad craves soft cheese, so I went with goat cheese since it’s appropriate for the English countryside setting. Stilton would be even more appropriate, but I couldn’t get any. Up to this point, my salad is pretty much a standard beet salad, so I wanted something unusual to set it apart. Apricots were the answer to my prayer—sweet enough to brighten up all the other flavors, while rich enough not to get overpowered.
I ate this with my sister after I finished taking pictures, and we absolutely devoured it! In fact, she normally doesn’t like goat cheese, but she loved it here. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did! 🙂
A
Salad of Beetroot
“They ordered a good dinner consisting of a turtle, three or four beefsteaks, some gravy made with the fat of a green goose, some lampreys, escalloped oysters, and a small salad of beet root.”
— Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell
INGREDIENTS:
- For the Salad
- 4 medium beets
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 4 large kale greens, deveined
- 2 large beet greens, deveined if needed
- 6 sliced apricots, fresh or canned
- 3/4 cup crumbled goat cheese
- 1 lb chopped cooked bacon
- 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
- To make, preheat oven to 325°. Grease a baking sheet and set aside. In a small bowl, stir together pine nuts, 1/2 tsp olive oil, and 1/8 tsp salt. Spread out on the baking sheet. Bake for 5-7 minutes, stirring halfway through. Allow to cool on the pan. Transfer to a sealed container until ready to use.
- For the Honey Dijon Vinaigrette
- 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp pepper
Makes 4 servings
INSTRUCTIONS:
- TO ROAST THE BEETS. Preheat oven to 400°. Peel and slice the beets into 1/4-inch thick disks. Cut each disk in half. Toss them in a medium bowl with the olive oil, honey, salt, and pepper until well coated. Spread out evenly on a greased baking sheet and roast for 20 minutes, flipping the pieces halfway through. Allow to cool on the pan.
- TO ASSEMBLE THE SALAD. Wash and dry greens. Tear into bite-sized pieces and divide evenly between 4 serving plates. Layer on the apricot slices, prepared beets, goat cheese, bacon, and pine nuts.
- TO MAKE THE VINAIGRETTE. Combine all ingredients in a small sealed container (like a small Tupperware container). Shake vigorously for 1-2 minutes or until well combined. Drizzle over salad to taste.
- Serve at your Yorkshire manor house between your magical studies.
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