Roasted Beets with Honeyed Goat Cheese
This no-recipe recipe is one of my favorite interchangeable recipes to throw together depending on what vegetables I have on hand. This is my go-to easy appetizer or snack (occasionally “girl dinner”) throughout the spring and summer months. Depending on the type of vegetable I am working with, I will either serve the dish warm or cold. For beets, you can go either way but I personally prefer them warmed. Some of my favorite variations for this recipe are carrots, potatoes, broccolini, asparagus, fennel and even summer squash. The options are endless and you can change the goat cheese base for something like a pesto, flavored butter, or even something like a Boursin cheese. Let’s get cookin’!
INGREDIENTS
3-4 smaller-sized beets
Salt and pepper
Good quality olive oil
Toasted pine nuts
Goat cheese
Good quality honey
Chives, for topping
Basil or herb oil (to make it fancy!)*
*Can also use a flavored olive oil in place of this or simply omit this if you’d prefer
Instructions
Preheat oven to 400 F.
Wash and prep beets (or vegetable of choice).
Place beets on squares of aluminum and drizzle with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Massage the beets to get the olive oil, salt and pepper coated over the exterior of each beet and wrap the beets in the aluminum foil. Place wrapped beets on a baking sheet and roast in the oven until tender.
Note: Beets usually take about 45 mins-1 hour to completely cook through but timing depends entirely on the size of the beets so keep an eye on them as they cook and once you can stick a knife or fork in and it glides all the way into the beet, you’re golden.
Remove the beets from the oven once they’re done cooking. Open the aluminum foil to allow air in and begin cooling down the beets slightly. BE CAREFUL! The steam from the beets can burn your hands so I recommend doing this step with a baking mitt on.
While the beets begin to cool down, in a small bowl, mix together the honey and goat cheese. Spread this mixture onto your serving dish.
Take beets out of aluminum with a fork and place on a cutting board. I like to use cutting boards made of food-grade plastic for this to avoid having the beet color seep into a wood cutting board. Slice the beets into the thickness you’d prefer and arrange the beet slices atop the goat cheese on your serving dish.
Top with basil-infused olive oil or basil/herb oil of your choice, toasted pine nuts, and fresh chives. Serve and enjoy!
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