April 2, 2014 | 0 Comments

Flower-Power Salad with Golden Beets, Grapes, Toasted Hazelnuts and Lemon Vinaigrette

It’s spring, which means it’s time to find new ways to dupe my husband into eating all the veggies I’m harvesting from our garden. Luckily I found a secret weapon: edible flowers! When you see something as pretty as a purple viola or bright red nasturtium on your plate, it draws your attention…and totally distracts John from the beets I’m tricking him into eating. Ha ha!

Now you and I know that freshly roasted golden beets – which are rapidly rolling into farmer’s markets and grocery stores – are simply delicious and have a slightly sweet, mellow flavor. And they’re one of the only sources for an awesome phytonutrient called betalains, which have anti-inflammatory and detoxification properties, not to mention vital free-radical-fighting antioxidants. And since there’s evidence that betalains help prevent cancer, eating beets is a tasty way to stay healthy, especially with this beautiful and delicious salad! But to John, beets are classified as “Weird Vegetables” in his “Never Eat That” food file. So naturally, I made it my mission to trick him into eating beets…and he LOVED this salad!

Being the devious cook that I am, I also decided to slip in some grapes and toasted hazelnuts to give this lovely spring salad some additional nutrients and protein, and a nice little crunch. Tossed with a light and zesty lemon vinaigrette, this salad will not only wow your friends and family with its beauty, but also with its refreshing and unique flavors and heath benefits. And yes, you will totally get to trick ‘weird vegetable’ haters into eating beets, which is both fun and yummy!

Cimeron’s Flower-Power Salad with Golden Beets, Grapes, Hazelnuts and Lemon Vinaigrette

Serves: 8

1 head red butter lettuce, or 7 cups baby mixed greens

10 small golden beets (or 4 big ones), scrubbed and ends trimmed off

1 cup seedless grapes, halved (or if you want to get really fancy, use tiny champagne grapes)

¾ cup toasted hazelnuts, chopped

a small handful of edible flowers (such as pansies, violas, calendula, or nasturtium)

For the vinaigrette:

¼ cup white lemon balsamic vinegar (I adore the one made by 11Olives.com. But if you don’t have some handy, you can substitute plain white balsamic vinegar mixed with 1 heaping teaspoon of lemon zest)

1 tsp minced shallot

¼ tsp freshly ground pepper

1 tsp Dijon mustard

A pinch of salt

1 tbsp maple syrup

1/3 cup canola oil

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Line a small baking sheet with aluminum foil, spray lightly with oil, then seal up the beets in the foil. Bake until the beets a bit soft to the touch – about an hour. Cool until handleable then rub off the skins with a dish cloth or paper towel. Slice beets and refrigerate until cool.

To make the vinaigrette, whisk together all the ingredients except the oil. Then slowly drizzle in the oil while whisking vigorously.

Toss all the salad ingredients together – except the flowers – with your desired amount of dressing. Garnish with flowers…the brighter the better to distract any beet-averse husbands, wives, kids or friends. 🙂

Serve immediately and enjoy!

Tags: beet, edible flowers, golden beets, grape, hazelnut, salad, vegan, vegetarian

Categories: Main dish, Recipes, Starters and sides

Author:Cimeron

Cimeron Morrissey is an award-winning magazine writer who writes about her passions, which include travel, water sports, animal rescue and food.

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