warm beetroot & basil salad with tahini dressing
packed with
the dressing I use for this recipe is really versatile and I use it on a range of salads. I am not a fan of store bought dressings as they are loaded with sugar and often contain poor quality refined vegetable oils. a homemade dressing can add not only flavour but also huge nutritional value to your meals. Tahini is made from ground sesame seeds and is rich in magnesium and calcium, both of which are needed for optimum bone health.
makes 4 side servings
- 4 raw beets (leaves removed, washed, trimmed and chopped into quarters / or if they are small roast them whole)
- 1 tsp olive oil
- large bag of mixed leafy greens (include the trimmed beetroot leaves)
- seeds from 1 pomegranate
- 2 tbsp of roast hazelnuts (roughly chopped)
- large handful of basil (roughly chopped)
tahini & honey dressing
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp tahini
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar (or lemon juice)
- 2 tsp raw honey
- 1 tsp dijon mustard
- sea salt
make and do
- - preheat the oven to 180C
- - place the beets on a roasting tray and season with salt & pepper and a drizzle of olive oil
- - cover with foil and roast for approx. 1 hour – the time will depend on the size of the beets (check with a skewer)
- - combine all the ingredients for the dressing in a bowl and whisk until smooth (use about half of this dressing for this dish and keep the rest in the fridge for another salad)
- - place the leaves in a large serving dish and drizzle over the tahini & honey dressing
- - add a scattering of the pomegranate seeds, hazelnuts and freshly torn basil
- - finally add the warm beetroot straight from the oven
with a twist
- - add some lentils to boost the protein content / make into a main meal
