Roasted Beet Salad with toasted pepitas and feta cheese

Sam Di Battista from Vivo Kitchen shares this delicious salad of roasted beets dressed with toasted pepitas and feta cheese. It’s just what we need right now for Spring: with the return of sunshine and warmer weather, the balance of earthy beets and the light tang of the feta re perfectly balanced.

This makes a great side dish or starter course, or double the recipe and enjoy it as a vegetarian main course. Sam often serves it as a side dish with Bistecca alla Rosmarí. His delicious Farro and White Bean Salad is the finishing touch to a great meal.

Buy beets or roast at home?

It’s always ‘beets’ to roast at home. If you’re in a pinch for time, store bought will do, but it’s always “beets” to roast at home. This simple recipe features “No Peeling Required” and “No Foil wrapping.” Roasting in a covered pan with water and vinegar makes a for velvety texture and loads of flavor. Just give the beets a little pre-roast scrub and rinse and you’re ready to go!

Roasted Beet Salad

Ingredients

6 medium beets
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 T sugar
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup crumbled feta
1/4 cup pepitas
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp ground ginger
Salt and pepper
Olive oil

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375.

Wash beets and place in a deep roasting pan with vinegar, sugar and water and roast covered until tender. About 40 minutes. Let cool. Skins will stuff off easily. Cut into chunks after removing skins.

In a dry skillet, combine pepitas, garlic powder and ginger. Heat on high until pepitas begin to brown. Finish with salt and pepper.

In a bowl, combine beets and pepitas. Sprinkle with feta. Salt and pepper to taste. Perhaps add a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Plate with fresh thin slices of lime, arugula, sliced peppadew peppers, a sprinkle of slivered scallions…or any fresh touch that pleases your palette.

Check out Sam’s recipe for Farro and White Beans — another stellar side dish for your next dinner.

Assembling the Beet Salad

Roasted Beets
1/3 cup pepitas
1 t salt
1/2 t garlic powder
1 t ginger powder
1/4 cup of sliced sweety drop peppers

Optional Garnish:
Lime slices
Flat Leaf Parsley

In a dry pan over medium heat, add the pepitas, salt, garlic powder and ginger powder. Toss until they just start to brown from heat and pour onto a large plate or cookie sheet to cool

Cut beets into quarters or eighths, depending on size preference. Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl, toss to combine and serve.

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STORY BY JUSTIN MATASE / PHOTOGRAPHY BY DAVE BRYCE / STYLING BY KEITH RECKER / VIDEOGRAPHY BY DANA CUSTER AND ARIELLA FURMAN