Roasted Beet Salad

beetsalad

This classic salad, full of antioxidants, is delicious in winter or summer. We recommend serving it at room temperature, but cold and warm are also delicious. Try with different colored beets (golden, traditional red and even candy striped) for variety. We love this salad on a summer evening with a glass of wine.

INGREDIENTS

  • 8 Beets, washed but not peeled
  •  ½ cup Trade Joe’s Premium Olive Oil
  • ½ cup Balsamic Vinegar
  • 3 tsp. Kosher Salt
  • 1 ¼ tsp. freshly ground Black Pepper
  • 4 oz. Baby Arugula or other bitter lettuce
  • 4 oz. Goat Cheese

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 400° F. Wrap the beets individually in aluminum foil and place them on a sheet pan. Roast them until a sharp knife inserted into the center indicates they’re tender (50 minutes – 1 hour depending on their size). Unwrap your beets and let cool until safe to handle (about 10 minutes). Peel them over a piece of parchment paper to avoid staining your cutting board.

Whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, mustard, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon black pepper and set aside. While the beets are still warm, cut each one half and each half into 5 or 6 wedges, then place into large mixing bowl. As you’re cutting the beets, toss them with half of the vinaigrette you just made up (warm beets absorb more), 1 teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Continue to add salt and pepper to taste.

In a separate bowl, toss the arugula with just enough vinaigrette to moisten the leaves. Place on a serving platter and top with your beets and goat cheese. Serve when beets are warm or at room temperature.

Broccoli Salad

broccoli-salad

This is a delightful side dish that is quick, easy, tasty, and healthy!

INGREDIENTS

  • 6 cups broccoli florets
  • 1 cup golden raisins
  • 1 package of bacon
  • ½ package of green onions (about 3-4 onions)
  • 2 tablespoons vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 cups mayonnaise

DIRECTIONS

  1. Cut up broccoli florets
  2. Cook bacon and crumble into dish
  3. Add raisins
  4. Mix vinegar, sugar and mayonnaise, add to salad and mix

Serves 8 – 12 people and is better after a few hours in the refrigerator

Cucumber Salad

cucumber-salad

This is a simple summer salad. It’s quick, easy, has hardly any calories, and (most importantly) it’s actually tasty!

Serves 6 people and is better after a few hours in the refrigerator.

INGREDIENTS

  • 2 large cucumbers
  • 1/3 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
  • ½ cup Trader Joe’s white balsamic vinegar
  • ½ cup Trader Joe’s rice vinegar
  • ¼ cup Trader Joe’s extra virgin olive oil
  • ¼ teaspoon – fresh ground black pepper (Best grinder in the world—The Khun Rikon from Switzerland, found at Williams Sonoma)
  • ¼ teaspoon – Trader Joe’s sea salt
  • ½ teaspoon – Dried dill weed
  • Optional: squeeze of lime

DIRECTIONS

  1. Peel both cucumbers. Slice them down the middle and de-seed with a small spoon. (baby spoons work great!) Cut into u-shaped bites.
  2. Chop up your cilantro, make sure that you have no stems.
  3. Add both vinegars, olive oil, dill weed, salt and pepper.

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Trader Joe’s is a retail grocery store chain in nine states: http://www.traderjoes.com/