Not a fan of goat cheese? Feel free to substitute it with feta or blue cheese. Mache, also known as lambs lettuce, has a slightly nutty taste.
INGREDIENTS:
2-3 red beets, oven-roasted in foil until tender
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 cup olive oil
1 cup hazelnut oil
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
Salt and pepper
Goat or feta cheese, crumbled
Toasted hazelnuts, chopped
Fresh mixed salad greens or mache*
METHOD:
Peel the cooked beets; reserve one or two for salad.
In a food processor, combine mustard, 1 cooked beet, olive oil, hazelnut oil, and vinegar. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Slice or roughly chop the remaining beets.
Place mixed salad greens in a large mixing bowl. Drizzle with enough dressing to coat leaves. Toss in the remaining beets and plate. Garnish each salad with crumbles of goat (or feta) cheese and chopped hazelnuts.
NOTES:
Once considered a weed, mache (pronounced “mahsh”) is now a popular salad green. Before French farmers began cultivating it, mache was harvested from fields where it grew among crops like rye, corn, and wheat – hence one of its common names, corn salad. Mache is also known as lamb’s lettuce. The sweet, slightly nutty leaves are tender and juicy.
