Winter Citrus Salad
There is something so special about citrus season in Arizona. The scent of lemon, grapefruit, and orange blossoms in the air signals the arrival of longer days and warmer temps to come. This magical time of year serves as the inspiration behind our Winter Citrus Salad recipe. The earthy taste of roasted beets, salty olives, and fresh citrus combine perfectly to create a refreshing and light versatile salad is the perfect compliment to almost any main course. And did we mention it’s absolutely beautiful?
Takes: 50 minutes to prepare | 1 hour to chill prior to serving
Adapted from: Joshua'McFadden with Martha Holmberg, “Six Seasons: A New Way with Vegetables”, Roasted Beet, Citrus, Olive Salad with Horseradish
serves 4
1 1/2 pounds beets (use a couple different kinds for variation of color - red and golden make a nice combo)
1 tsp Desert Provisions Meyer Lemon Sea Salt or Sonoran Sea Salt
2 tangerines
1 Cara Cara navel orange
1 small blood orange
1 grapefruit (white, pink or red - I used white in this recipe)
1 lime, peeled and sliced crosswise into rounds
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
2-3 tbsp citrus juice (reserved from segmenting citrus)
1/4 tsp dried chili flakes
1/3 cup roughly chopped pitted green Castelvetrano olives
1 cup lightly packed flat-leaf parsley leaves
1/4 small red onion, thinly sliced
Extra-virgin olive oil
Preheat oven to 375°F. Trim both end of the beets and scrub under water to remove any dirt. Cut or leave whole, but make sure each piece is roughly the same size so they cook evenly. Place beets in a baking dish and season with salt, and pour ¼ cup water into dish. Cover tightly with foil and steam-roast about 40 minutes until tender.
Once cool enough to handle, slide the skins off. Cut the beets into wedges, circles, or cubes and place in a large bowl.
Peel the orange and segment into wedges, doing so over a bowl to catch the juices. Whisk together 2 tbsp citrus juice, vinegar, ½ teaspoon salt, and chili flakes. Pour over the beets (still warm if possible) and toss. Let them sit and absorb the dressing for a few minutes and then toss again. Add the olives, parsley, onion, citrus segments and toss together. Drizzle high quality olive oil over top and toss again to taste. (I used approximately 2 tbsp olive oil.) Allow to chill in fridge for 1 hour or serve immediately.
Cook's notes: This salad welcomes many variations! Include tangerines, Mexican limes, or other citrus for extra brightness. In the original recipe, it calls for horseradish - we omitted it in our version - but recommend it for an added depth of flavor. Just grate a fine layer of horseradish over the top. Add grilled shrimp or chicken for a heartier meal.
You can also make this a day in advance and store in the fridge. The beets absorb a ton of flavor from the citrus/vinegar juice while they rest. Just wait to add olives, onion, citrus, and parsley until just before serving.
To segment citrus, use a sharp knife to cut off each end of the fruit to stabilize and provide a flat surface. Following the curve of the fruit, cut away rind in a downward motion and remove all the white pith. Repeat until the fruit is free of pith and rind. Again, using a sharp knife, cut out each segment (they will be wedge-shaped) between the membrane over a bowl to catch the juices. The trick here is using a sharp knife. Voila! There is a great tutorial on Food52 if you need help.
