Autumn Green Salad with Roasted Beets, Pears, and Almonds

I've already confessed that I'm terrible at following through with my intentions to make a snazzy drink for dinner party. I might as well get this out on the table, too: salad is usually an afterthought.

I love, love, love, having salad with dinner or -- even better -- as its own course, but I start with dessert, the most important course, and then usually get sidetracked making the main course and the side dishes.

The next thing you know it's 10 minutes before our guests arrive, we have no salad, and I combing through the bottom of the vegetable bin to see what is left there that I can turn into something salad-worthy. Sometimes the result actually works and is an unusual combination that I never planned. But usually it's less than inspiring.

A little crunch from a fresh green salad is especially key at Thanksgiving to balance out all those soft comfort foods. Mashed potatoes, stuffing, sweet potatoes, even roasted vegetables. All great stuff but not much there in the way of texture. For us vegetarians, there isn't even the chewiness of the turkey.

This year I'm going to do it right.

This salad uses beets and pears to celebrate the season, alongside fresh greens. I added a bit of arugula for its peppery flavor, but not enough to overwhelm the milder flavors of the pears and beets. I even bought dill. At the store. Instead of frantically dashing out at T minus 3 to the herb garden to see what was still growing, I actually planned in advance and put dill on the list.

I'm guessing that this forethought will be an aberration in my planning approach. But this year, anyway, we'll have a tasty seasonal salad at Thanksgiving.

And now I can turn my attention to dessert.

Autumn Green Salad with Roasted Beets, Pears, and Almonds

The parts of this salad can be made in advance. The beets can be raosted, the almonds toasted, the greens washed, and the dressing whisked. The pears can even be diced a few hours in advance. Just toss them with a bit of the dressing to keep them from turning brown.

Serves 8
20 minutes preparation time
20-40 minutes roasting time

8 handfuls of a mix of seasonal greens and arugula
4 medium-sized beets, red or golden
2 Bosc pears
1/4 cup Champagne or white wine vinegar
3/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup sliced almonds
2 tablespoons chopped dill
salt and freshly ground pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Wrap the beets in foil and arrange them on a baking sheet. Roast until the beets are tender. Depending on the size of the beets, this will take anywhere from 20 to 45 minutes.

When the beets have cooked, set them aside until they are cool enough to handle. Peel off the foil and slip the skins off with your hands.

Slice the beets into bite-sized chunks. Wash the pears, slice and core them and cut them into bite-sized pieces.

Whisk together the oil, vinegar, salt pepper, and dill.

Put the greens in a large bowl. Add about half of the dressing and toss with the greens. Taste and, if needed, add additional dressing. You may not need it all. Sprinkle the pears, almonds, and beets over the top of the salad.

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Comments

[Mimi]

Thanks. This series has been a fun little lead up to Thanksgiving. Inspiring and healthy food is really appreciated as all those winter comforts start coming out. Looking forward to getting "Plenty" soon.

[Margy]

Thanks, Mimi! Hope you enjoy Plenty as much as I have!

[Fran Quin]

Lovely site - just found it while searching for a quark recipe that wasn't a dessert. We're coming to end of spring here in Australia - hope your winter is not too severe. Cheers

[Margy]

So glad you discovered the site, Fran. I love that you are reading from Australia. And happy spring to you!