I love eating hearty foods in winter, and beets are up there with some of my favorite foods (good thing I’m marrying The Russian). I love the earthy flavor, the texture, and how well they pair with so many different foods (I also love all the fun colors they come in).

I really also love goat cheese. I fell in love with it while working as a waitress.  Its so…interesting.  For those who haven’t tried it, try it. It’s really cool.

So I came across the roasted beet salad at Cafeteria Boston (because I work there), and I fell in love.  Slow roasted beets, arugula, pecans, goats cheese, and shaved fennel all tossed in an orange–balsamic dressing. It’s awesome.  I have it all the time for my employee meal.

FYI: this salad is also under $12, so if you’re in the neighborhood, try the salad that is my inspiration! (279a Newbury Street in Boston).

I love it so much, in fact, that I decided to make my take on the roasted beet salad.

The concept is the same, but I added balsamic glaze, switched the arugula for a mixed baby lettuce salad (there was no arugula at the store– see my lettuce shortage story). I also took out fennel, because I don’t really care for anise flavors (personal prefernce, feel free to add some if you like0. The ingredients are cheap as well, you can feed a few for just pennies!

Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients:

1 package skirt steak [$5]

3 beets [$3]

1 package salad greens [$3]

1 package goat cheese [$4]

1 lemon [ 50 cents]

1 blood orange [50 cents]

balsamic syrup ( this stuff is wonderful, reduced balsamic vinegar that comes in a squeeze bottle. It reduces a step and the glaze can go on everything! found in the salad dressing aisle of your supermarket). [$4]

Instructions:

Roast the beets by wrapping them in aluminum foil with a squeeze of lemon juice and some olive oil and placing them in a 450 degree oven for about 40 minutes.

In the meantime, toss the greens with some olive oil, salt pepper and the juice of half the blood orange.  place on plates with portions of goat cheese.

Cook the steak in a grill pan for about 3 minutes per side for med. rare (my favorite temp for steak). let rest 10 minutes so the steak retains its juices.

When the beets are fork-tender, take them out of the oven and let cool. rub the beets with paper towels to remove the skins, then cut into wedges.  Place wedges in bowl and top with olive oil, the remaining blood orange juice, salt and pepper.  Add to the salad and cheese.

When the steak has rested, slice and add to the salad.  Drizzle with the balsamic glaze, and enjoy!

The best part, as always, are the leftovers. I used the leftover steak, goat cheese, and salad to make steak and eggs the next morning.  Just cook the steak to your preferred temperature and scramble the eggs with the goat cheese ( I added some leftover scallions as well).  Toss the greens with olive oil and vegetable seasoning and serve on the side.

Altogether a great winter meal.

-L