Golden Beet Salad with Pistachios and Parmigiano Reggiano
Servings: 3 people (figure 1 large beet per person)
Ingredients:
3 large roasted and peeled golden beets (or 6 small)
1 large shallot, finely minced
½ c. red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
1 tablespoon honey
1 c. extra virgin olive oil + more for seasoning
Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper
A handful of arugula or any hearty greens
A handful of picked basil
½ cup toasted pistachios, roughly chopped
Parmigiano reggiano for peeling over top
Start by cooking your beets. You can follow along with my Beet Roasting 101 instructions to perfectly roast your beets for this recipe.
For the dressing. I like using a jar for dressings because all you have to do is add the ingredients in order and shake em up! But of course you can follow along the same steps with a bowl and a whisk too. Take your finely minced shallots and place them in the jar or medium bowl. Add in your red wine vinegar, mustard and honey. Shake or whisk them up. Now add in your olive oil. If using a bowl and whisk, you’ll want to drizzle in the olive oil slowly while you are whisking until you reach the desired consistency and flavor. If you are using the jar method, go ahead and add in most of the oil, shake it up and see if it needs more. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
Take your beets and cut them into large chunks and place them in a large bowl. While the beets are still warm, toss some of the dressing all over the beets to evenly coat them. This helps the beets really absorb the flavor more. Season again with salt and pepper if needed. You can stop here if you are making this ahead for a dinner party and do the last bit of assembly when you are ready to serve.
For the assembly. Take your arugula and basil and toss that in with your beets along with the pistachios. If you have larger basil leaves, you can just tear them a bit with your hands. You want this to be a beet forward dish. The arugula and basil should be scattered throughout the beets but in no way should this be a leafy green salad. Taste again! Maybe it needs some more dressing or a drizzle of olive oil! Place in a shallow bowl or serving platter. Take a vegetable peeler and peel a bunch of fresh, high quality parmigiano reggiano all over top. I like using a high quality for something like this because the crystallized and salty texture/flavor is unbeatable. It compliments the sweetness of the beets perfectly in this dish. You just don’t get that with the cheap stuff. Feel free to finish with a few extra cracks of black pepper over top and voila! You have your finished Golden Beet Salad with Pistachios and Parmigiano Reggiano.
