My Farm Fresh to You box arrived this week with beautiful beets inside. I decided to pickle the beets with cardamom and other spices, and serve them chilled, in a salad.
I used fresh pea sprouts for the greens, but any lettuce would do. This salad was clearly all about the beets.
I dressed the salad with lemon vinaigrette and feta cheese. I hurried to take pictures because this was my lunch, and what a lunch it was!
Ingredients
- 5-6 medium-sized beets
- For the picking liquid:
- 1 cup golden balsamic vinegar
- ½ cup water
- ½ cup sugar
- ¼ teaspoon pickling spice
- ¼ teaspoon mustard seeds
- Seeds from 1 cardamom pod
- ¾ teaspoon whole green or black peppercorns
- For the lemon vinaigrette:
- Zest and juice of 1 lemon
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon crushed black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
- ¼ cup extra virgin (light tasting olive oil)
- For the salad:
- Salad greens of your choice
- Feta cheese (crumbled, amount to taste)
Instructions
- If you are using red beets and yellow beets and you want to retain their colors, cook and pickle the beets separately.
- Cut the tops and roots off the beets and scrub to remove all dirt. Place the beets in a pot and cover with cold water. Bring water to a boil then lower the temperature to medium. Cook the beets until a sharp knife can easily inserted into the middle. Remove from heat, pour off water. Rinse the beets under cold water until cool enough to handle. The peels should slide off easily under cold, running water. Slide, dice, or quarter the beets as desired.
- For the pickling liquid:
- Remove the cardamom seeds from the pod by breaking the pod open. Remove the seeds and discard the pod. While the beets are cooking, add all the pickling ingredients to a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower heat to a simmer and cook an additional 10 minutes. Remove from heat and pour through a strainer, collecting the liquid and discarding the solids.
- Pour the hot pickling liquid over the beets. Allow to cool to room temperature then refrigerate in the liquid until ready to use. Will keep for several days in the refrigerator.
- To assemble the salad add your greens to a plate, top with beets, dressing and crumbled Feta cheese.