Beets, Greens and Apple Salad with Roquefort Cheese

This recipe is adapted from Apples: A Country Garden Cookbook by Christopher Idone. The original recipe called for a mixture of radicchio, endive and watercress as the base.  Since we don’t grow those things, we tried it with shredded savoy cabbage instead.  We found that too heavy and uninteresting.  A mixture of lighter greens, such as baby spinach, arugula, and baby beet greens got our stamp of approval. 

(Serves 4)

Ingredients:

Cider-Walnut Dressing

  • 2 Tbs cider vinegar

  • 4 Tbs walnut oil

  • 2 Tbs olive oil

  • 1 Tbs Dijon-style mustard

  • salt & pepper to taste

Salad

  • mixture of baby greens, washed and dried

  • 4 medium beets, sliced ¼” thick

  • 2 medium, tart apples, julienned

  • ¼ cup chopped walnuts, lightly toasted

  • salt & pepper to taste

  • 4 oz. Roquefort cheese, crumbled

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

  2. In a large bowl, whisk together the vinegar, oils and mustard.  Season with salt and pepper.

  3. Toss the sliced beets with a 1/2 Tbs of olive oil and a dash of salt, and spread evenly on a baking sheet. Roast for 30 minutes or until they are easily pierced by a fork.

  4. When the beets have cooled, cut them into julienne strips, and toss the beets and apples with half the dressing.  Toss the greens with the remainder of the dressing. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

  5. Arrange the greens on four individual plates.  Place the beets and apples on top of the greens. Top with the walnuts and crumbled Roquefort cheese.