Beetroot, Feta and Walnut Salad

I was having a chat on Twitter earlier on with Jacqueline from Tinned Tomatoes about the lovely sunny weather today, which made us both feel like eating salad. Totally the opposite to yesterday’s weather, which actually saw me making a huge Cottage Pie!

Jacqueline mentioned her love of a ‘Caprese’ salad, with tomatoes and mozzarella adding fresh avocado too. I also love the simplicity of such a salad, especially with a few basil leaves thrown over the top from the garden and even a sprinkle of puy lentils and balsamic vinegar.

Today, however, I fancied a Beetroot, Feta and Walnut Salad which really couldn’t be simpler. I first had this salad at Marco Pierre White’s restaurant when I went along to a cookery demonstration there. I came home, immediately re-created it and have been making it ever since.

Beetroot, Feta and Walnut Salad
Inspired by Marco Pierre-White

(Serves 2)

Ingredients:

250g Beetroot, drained (*See note below for fresh beetroot)
150g Feta Cheese or Goat’s Cheese
8-10 Walnuts
1 Tablespoon rapeseed or olive oil
1/2 Teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
A scattering of fresh herbs (baby basil or baby coriander)

Method:

Thinly slice the beetroot (I use a knife but you could use a mandolin) and scatter it over a large plate.

Chop up some walnuts or lightly toasted pine nuts and sprinkle over.

Crumble over some feta cheese, as much or as little as you like. Goat’s cheese would be fine too or even Lancashire cheese.

Drizzle with rapeseed or olive oil and season with the pepper. Add a few basil or other leaves** to dress.

*Note: If using fresh seasonal beetroot, remove any stalks or leaves but leave the beetroot whole and leave the skin on to prevent it from bleeding. Boil in a large pan of water for 1-1/2 hours until tender. Wear plastic gloves and peel the skin off by hand. Alternatively, microwave the beetroot (again, skin on) for 8-10 minutes.

**My latest supermarket find is the Waitrose ‘Finishing Touches’ range – I like the ‘Baby Coriander & Baby Amaranth’ but if you can’t find it a few leaves of basil or baby basil would be fine.

I’m linking this up to July’s Simple and in Season blogging event here at Fabulicious Food!

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Ren Behan

Ren Behan is a British-born food writer of Polish descent. She is a mum to two young children (6 and 3) and spends lots of time with them in the kitchen. Ren writes about seasonal, family-friendly food on her blog www.renbehan.com and about Polish food on her site www.mypolishkitchen.co.uk. She also contributes recipes and articles to online and print food publications. Ren holds a Diploma in Food Journalism with Distinction and has completed a Food Styling course at Leiths School of Food and Wine. Full Profile on Google+