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It may be January, but it sure felt like spring at the Mar Vista famers market this morning. I walked the market with Venice chef and culinary instructor Amanda Cushman and found white corn from the Imperial Valley, snow-pea leaves and other Asian greens, and even sweet English peas. But the dazzling rainbow-colored beets stole the show. Amanda happily shared this beet salad recipe from her cookbook, Simple, Real Food.
Warm beet salad with endive and goat cheese (from Simple, Real Food by Amanda Cushman; serves 4)
- 2 lbs beets, washed and quartered
- 4 Tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 cup lemon juice
- salt and pepper to taste
- 6 Tbsp mint, minced
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 2 heads endive, julienned (cut into thin strips)
- 1 bunch watercress, tough stems removed
- 5 ounces fresh goat cheese
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Wash the beets well. On a baking sheet, toss the beets with 1 Tbsp of the oil, salt and pepper. Roast until the beets are tender, about 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool.
While the beets are roasting, whisk together the lemon juice, remaining olive oil, salt, pepper, mint and lemon zest in a bowl (big enough to hold the whole salad). Taste and adjust the seasoning. Reserve 3 Tbsp of the dressing in another bowl.
Peel the beets, dice them, and toss them with the reserved dressing.
Add the endive and watercress to the larger bowl of dressing, toss, and arrange on salad plates. Top with the beets and crumble the goat cheese on top. Serve warm or cold.
Chef Amanda Cushman focuses her cooking on fresh, organic ingredients. Her cookbook, Simple, Real Food, was featured recently on KCRW's Good Food and contains straightforward recipes for the home cook. She teaches cooking classes all over Los Angeles, including a new series called "Better than a Restaurant" starting January 29, 2009. Her website has information on upcoming classes.
The Mar Vista farmers market is open every Sunday, rain or shine, 8:30am-2pm, at the corner of Grandview Avenue and Venice Boulevard.
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