Beets With Avocado And Orange
Top Chef winner and marathoner Richard Blais serves this inventive salad as a side at holiday meals. A good source of fiber, beets get their red hue from betalains, antioxidants with cancer-fighting properties. Serve the salad alongside roasted turkey, chicken, or fish. Wasabi paste is not always gluten free, so runners avoiding the wheat protein should check the ingredient label.
Ingredients
- 1 piece 2" black licorice
- Splash of red wine vinegar
- 2 medium to large red beets about 1 pound
- 4 tablespoons fruit vinegar try raspberry
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon wasabi paste
- ΒΌ cup walnut oil
- Salt and ground black pepper
- 1 orange peeled, divided into segments, and cut into bite-size pieces
- 1 avocado cut into medium dice
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
Instructions
- Put the licorice in the freezer to let it get rock hard.
- Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the red wine vinegar and beets. Boil, covered, for 20 to 30 minutes, or until you can stick them with a fork and it comes out easily. When the beets are cooked, peel and chop them (while still warm) into bite-size pieces.
- Whisk together the fruit vinegar, mustard, wasabi, and walnut oil. Toss the beets in the mixture and season to taste with salt and pepper. Fold in the orange, avocado, and basil.
- Remove the licorice from the freezer and shave atop the salad as you would Parmesan cheese.