Freshly Roasted Beet, Gorgonzola, and Toasted Pecan Salad

Have you ever worked out really, really hard and then consumed a meal that barely hit your teeth? (If you are one of those people who eats like half a sandwich and then declares what an absolute pig you are, and how stuffed you feel, don't tell me that. I may mock you. And secretly envy you.)

Well, since I knew I was that hungry when I made this salad, I ate a few things beforehand, so that I could actually enjoy the salad, and....you know.....taste it.

So you are super lucky today, because you get a 2 for 1 special- a recipe, and a fresh beet-roasting tutorial. I know, I know. It's a dream come true.

I had one bunch of beets that I had purchased at the Farmer's Market on Saturday. I gave the beet greens to my mom, she loves to eat them. So I took a piece of foil and put it on a cookie sheet and plopped the fresh beets on the foil.

Then I drizzled them with a bit of olive oil.

Then wrapped them entirely with foil. I had been a bit stingy with the first piece, so I added another. Then, put them into a 350 degree oven for an hour or so.

I usually take them out of the oven and let them sit for another hour or so. Then open up the foil and let them cool down before you peel them. Peeling them is simple.

Basically, you grab the beet and sort of squeeze it, and the skin comes right off!!

The peeled beet

Then your hand looks all awesome and stained. What you should do at this point (this is especially fun if you have a teenager in the house) is go up to your kids and stick your beet-y hand in their face and yell AAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!! Just to see what their reaction will be. Like I said, this is quite popular with teens. They love it. Oh wait. Maybe not. Maybe they get annoyed. Either way, it's good fun.

It's not messy when you use the foil, I just ball up the foil and throw it away. Often the cookie sheet doesn't even have any beet on it at all.

Then I slice the beets into rounds and keep them in a container to eat for the week with salads.

So now for the salad- I started with a bed of mixed greens:

Toasted a handful of pecans- stick them in a pan for a few minutes until they smell toasty and you can sort of see some oil on the outside of the nut.

I used 2 Tb of crumbled Gorgonzola cheese. That stuff tastes SO good.

And a few of the sliced beets! I also threw on a handful of dried cranberries. I love the saltiness of the cheese with the sweetness of the beets and cranberries. Mmmmmmmm...

I used this dressing- it's also GREAT with Ranch too. I think the Kraft Light dressings taste the best! You could also do a squeeze of lemon and a drizzle of olive oil if you don't have dressing. But seriously, who doesn't have dressing?!

And if you've never had fresh beets, you should try them! They seem like they would be gross, but they're really tasty and good!

DINNER TONIGHT:

~Meatball Subs made with Make Ahead Meatballs

on French Bread Sandwich Rolls (and I use a few slices of Provolone or Jack cheese on each)

~Salad

~Watermelon