Entertaining

Beet salad

Name: Beet salad recipe
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 12 small red and yellow or other beetroot (900g total), washed and trimmed; 2 fresh bay leaves; 6 thyme sprigs; Extra virgin olive oil, to drizzle; Grated zest of 1 orange; 85g marinated goat's cheese; 25g walnut; Large pinch fresh chervil or flat-leaf parsley leaves, to serve; Large pinch fresh tarragon leaves, to serve; Pinch fresh dill fronds, to serve; 20.00 ml red wine vinegar; 2 tsp chopped eschalot (optional); 60ml olive oil

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by delicious. team

delicious. team

Apr 09, 2025

“We feel beets are underrated. They’re sweet, earthy, beautiful and incredibly versatile in the kitchen. At home, we often pickle them or roast them as a side dish, serve them as a cold soup or pile them into a colourful first-course salad like this one. Here, we first roast the beets with herbs and olive oil, then we gently peel off the skins and cut them into wedges, and finally dress them lightly with a vinaigrette made with red wine vinegar and a bit of orange zest. Bits of marinated goat cheese, fresh herbs and lightly toasted walnuts add great contrasting colours and a bit of texture. When using a variety of coloured beets, be sure to dress the red beets separately, so you don’t dye the rest of the beets red.” – Marjorie Taylor and Kendall Smith Franchini

This is an edited extract from French at Heart by Marjorie Taylor and Kendall Smith Franchini. Published by Abrams, AUD $59.99. Photography by Anson Smart.

12 small red and yellow or other beetroot (900g total), washed and trimmed
2 fresh bay leaves
6 thyme sprigs
Extra virgin olive oil, to drizzle
Grated zest of 1 orange
85g marinated goat's cheese
¼ cup (25g) toasted walnuts, coarsely chopped
Large pinch fresh chervil or flat-leaf parsley leaves, to serve
Large pinch fresh tarragon leaves, to serve
Pinch fresh dill fronds, to serve

Classic French vinaigrette

1 tbs red wine vinegar
2 tsp chopped eschalot (optional)
¼ cup (60ml) extra virgin olive oil

Method

1.

Preheat oven to 175°C/155°C fan-forced.
2.

Lay out two large pieces of aluminium foil. Place red beetroot, a bay leaf and half the thyme on one piece of foil and drizzle generously with olive oil. Season, pull up edges of the foil and crinkle them together on top to make a pouch. Repeat with second piece of foil and yellow or other beetroot (see recipe note). Place in an ovenproof dish and roast until beetroot is tender when pierced with a small knife, about 1 hour (depending on size of beetroot). Remove from oven and set aside until cool enough to handle. Use fingers to peel the beetroot. (You can refrigerate peeled beetroot overnight, covered, and bring to room temperature before continuing.)
3.

To make the dressing, in a large bowl, whisk together the vinegar, a pinch of salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper. Add eschalot (if using) and set mixture aside for about 10 minutes to soften the taste. Whisk in the olive oil.
4.

Cut beetroot into wedges (4 for smaller, 6 or 8 if larger), transferring red beetroot to one bowl and yellow or other beetroot to another as you work. Add about half the vinaigrette and half the orange zest to each bowl, then season each and mix gently to blend.
5.

Arrange beetroot on a larger platter. Top with pieces of crumbled goat's cheese and walnuts. Garnish with chervil, tarragon and dill. Serve at room temperature.