raw beet salad

I have loved beets since I was a little girl. They are sweet and earthy, brightly colored, and I will always happily gobble them up. I am learning that beets are one of those vegetables that many people just don't like. I'm not sure why--they are the candy of the vegetable family!

A recent article in the New York Times listed beets as #1 of the 11 best foods you aren't eating, as a great source of folate and potentially cancer-preventive antioxidants. To highlight that article, they have recently posted some great beet recipes--one of which I made last night and loved.

ingredients:

1/2 lb beets

3 tbsp freshly squeezed orange juice

1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp minced chives, mint, parsley, or a combination of the three

salt to taste

leaves of 1 romaine heart (I left these out this time)

This salad is easy and very quick to make. First, scrub the hell out of the beets, trim any gross-looking bits off, and then grate them into a medium/small bowl. Toss the minced mint, parsley, chives, or the mix with your grated beets. Add olive oil, juice, and mix well. I added just a dash of salt to my salad, mixed it again for good measure, and refridgerated it for about half an hour before serving to allow the juices to mingle.

I used fresh mint this time. I think if I had used chives or parsley instead, I might have used a tad more lemon juice than orange juice as a complement to the more savory herbs.
This mixture was awesome. I completely forgot to buy the romaine, but it stands alone quite well. It is a great summer salad and I had visions of grilled salmon served alongside. I would definitely bring this to a barbeque or summer potluck!