A beautiful center of the plate salad featuring roasted beets, candied seeds, and a sweet strawberry vinaigrette.
Salads don’t have to be relegated to boring appetizers or side dishes. Some salads stand on their own, whether eaten as a light lunch or accompanying a larger meal. That’s the case for this beautiful salad crafted by Amanda Turner of Austin’s Olamaie. It’s sweet, earthy, and utilizes a variety of textures from crisp arugula, to crunchy candied seeds, to crumbly gorgonzola. Chef Turner first roasts the beets until they’re tender, before using our Grill Frying Pan to give them some char and smoky flavor. Serve on our red-rimmed Plateware for an aesthetically pleasing touch.
A beautiful center of the plate salad featuring roasted beets, candied seeds, and a sweet strawberry vinaigrette.
Amanda Turner
For the beets, preheat oven to 350F. Place beets on a Sheet Pan lined with aluminum foil, and coat with oil and salt. Cover with more foil, folding up the edges to form an airtight seal. Roast beets until tender and pierce easily with a skewer or paring knife 2 ½–3 hours.
While the beets are roasting, make the vinaigrette. Whisk together jam, vinegars, oil, salt and pepper in a large bowl until fully combined. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. (Yields about ⅔ cup.)
For the candied seeds, place a Non Stick Frying Pan over medium heat. Add sunflower seeds and toast lightly on all sides, 5–7 minutes, then sprinkle - brown sugar over. Cook, stirring, until the sugar has dissolved into a sticky syrup. Remove from heat and spread the seeds out on a foil-lined ¼ Sheet Pan to cool. Sprinkle lightly with salt.
Remove beets from the oven and let cool until they can be handled safely. Once slightly cooled, peel and slice into bite sized pieces (you should have about 2 cups). Heat a Grill Frying Pan on a grill over high. Coat the beets in oil and add to the pan, shaking regularly to keep them from sticking. Grill, tossing occasionally until evenly charred, about 15 minutes.
To assemble the salad, combine beets and strawberries in a large bowl and dress with vinaigrette. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add arugula to a separate bowl and spoon beet and strawberry mixture over the greens. Crumble the gorgonzola over the salad and top with dill, chives, and candied seeds.
