Roasted Beet Salad with Grapefruit Vinaigrette
This Roasted Beet Salad with Grapefruit Vinaigrette is tangy, sweet, salty, and everything you could possibly want in a salad. It makes the perfect, colorful side for the winter holidays when citrus is in season, or to enjoy all year round. Packed with buttery beets, tangy goat cheese, sweet candied walnuts, savory red onions, and baby greens, the salad alone is delicious. Top it with the grapefruit vinaigrette made with bright citrus, tangy dijon mustard, and sweet honey, and you’ve got yourself a match made in salad heaven!
Oh, beets. How I love you. I think my generation grew up with an engrained hatred of beets (thanks to one of our favorite childhood cartoons, Doug). But when I tried them for the first time, I immediately fell in love. To me, they taste like candy. Sweet, buttery, and earthy, with the most unique texture and the most gorgeous color in the world.
And they are SO healthy! They’re full of antioxidants, they’re anti-inflammatory, and they help with detoxifying. They’re packed with folate, manganese, potassium, copper, and fiber. Their nutrients can help protect against heart disease, colon cancer, and birth defects.
Not to mention- they usually come attached to their greens, which are also edible and very healthy. I used them last week to make Broccoli Avocado Soup with Beet Greens. If you want, you can use the greens in this salad (although I prefer more delicate baby greens).
And the grapefruit vinaigrette. Oh goodness. This has become my new favorite recipe for salad dressing. I typically use the same ingredients as a base for all of my dressings- dijon mustard (which adds a tangy flavor and helps emulsify the dressing), an acid (in this case, a mixture of grapefruit juice and red wine vinegar), olive oil, salt, and pepper. I’ll add a little honey if it needs a touch of sweet.
A lot of people I know can’t have grapefruit due to being on medications that don’t react well with it. If this is you, or if you just can’t find good, fresh grapefruit, feel free to substitute orange juice for it.
Roasting the beets is easy. Just wrap them- unpeeled and drizzled with just a bit of olive oil- in aluminum foil. Roast on a baking sheet in the oven for about 45 minutes at 425 degrees (or, place the foil wrapped beets in your slow cooker on high for 3-4 hours). Remove them from the oven and allow them to cool, and the peels can be rubbed off with your hands. So easy!
That said, feel free to use the canned/jarred version to make this recipe extra simple and easy.
I used candied walnuts in this salad that I made last week. You can use candied walnuts or pecans from the store, or if you want the salad to be a bit less sweet, plain nuts can also be used.
Recipe for Roasted Beet Salad with Grapefruit Vinaigrette below!
Roasted Beet Salad with Grapefruit Vinaigrette
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Equipment
- Large Bowl
Ingredients
For the Grapefruit Vinaigrette:
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 cup grapefruit juice from about one whole medium-sized grapefruit
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
For the salad:
- 2 cups baby greens packed
- 1 cup cooked beets cut into 1/2 inch cubes (about 3 beets)
- 2 oz. goat cheese crumbled
- 1/4 cup candied walnuts or pecans
- 1/4 cup red onion thinly sliced
Instructions
- To make the dressing, place all ingredients in a mason jar and shake (or in a small bowl and whisk thoroughly).
- To make the salad, place all ingredients in a large bowl and toss with the dressing (reserve some if you like your salads lightly dressed). Alternatively, divvy up the salad ingredients into individual portions and dress each plate individually.
- Makes 2 large salads or 4 small salads. Dressing will stay good in the fridge for two weeks.
Notes
- Can't have grapefruit juice, or don't have any fresh ones on hand? Feel free to substitute orange juice for it.
- To roast the beets, place them unpeeled and drizzled with just a bit of olive oil- wrapped in aluminum foil. Roast on a baking sheet in the oven for about 45 minutes at 425 degrees (or, place the foil wrapped beets in your slow cooker on high for 3-4 hours). Remove them from the oven and allow them to cool, and the peels can be rubbed off with your hands.
- Don't want to roast the beets? Feel free to use canned/jarred beets instead.
- Time saving tip: Whisk the dressing ingredients in the bottom of a large bowl, and add salad ingredients on top. One less dish to wash!
- The provided nutrition information does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. Feel free to calculate it yourself using this calculator or by adding the recipe to Yummly.
Nutrition
Nutrition Information Disclaimer
The provided nutrition information is my best estimate and reflects one serving of the recipe (total servings indicated at top of recipe card). It does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. I use an automatic API to calculate this information. Feel free to calculate it yourself using one of these tools:
This salad is delicious. This is my second time making it.
So glad you liked it!
Great salads cucumber and radishes yum and
Refreshing salad ???? Thank You ????
OMG this looks so good! Definitely going to be adding this to my salad dressing rotation.
Thanks Jessica! Hope you liked it :-)