Ingredients
5 medium-sized beets
2 avocado
5 oranges (a mix of varieties works well here)
Optional: Fresh herbs, feta or goat cheese, toasted nuts or seeds
Citrus Vinaigrette
Zest from ½ a lemon
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 ½ teaspoons white wine vinegar
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove
Salt
Black pepper
Heat the oven to 400°.
First, roast the beets! Cut off the beet greens down to about an inch. Wrap the whole beets in a foil pouch or use a covered baking dish, which will help the beets steam. Bake the beets for 50-60 minutes, or until they are tender when poked with a knife. Remove the beets from their cooking receptacle and cool. Peel the beets and then, slice them into rounds about ¼ inch thick.
While the beets are roasting, prepare the oranges. Carefully cut away the peels using a sharp knife, trying to remove as much of the white pith as you can. Then slice the oranges into rounds around the middle (so that each slice has a piece of every natural orange segment). Aim for the slices to be about ¼ inch thick.
Then make the vinaigrette. Put the lemon zest, lemon juice, vinegar, and olive oil in a small bowl. Smash the garlic clove with the heel of your hand or a knife, remove the peel, and add it to the vinaigrette. Season with salt and pepper and shake to combine. Let this mixture hang out for at least 10 minutes, and remove the garlic clove before using. Refrigerate any leftover dressing and use on green salads, roasted or steamed vegetables, and any other salads your mind dreams up.
When the beets and oranges are sliced and your vinaigrette is made, thinly slice the avocados.
At this point, you can throw all of the components into a bowl and toss them with the dressing. This salad looks really lovely on a platter, too, in which case you can artfully lay out the citrus, then the beets, then the avocados, then anything else you might be adding, and then drizzle the dressing over top. Enjoy!
