Baked Beetroot Salad with Quinoa and Pear

Recipe

Baked Beetroot Salad with Quinoa and Pear

Recipe developed by Alberte Stengaard

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Roasted beetroot, juicy pears and nuts give this salad a rich, autumnal character. Combined with quinoa, crisp fennel and creamy avocado, it creates a balanced mix of sweetness, freshness and texture. The quick-pickled red onions add a light tang, while the feta brings a salty contrast. A simple dressing ties everything together and enhances the natural flavours. The salad works both as a satisfying meal on its own and as a colourful side, bringing seasonal ingredients together in a light and inviting way.

Ingredients

Baked beetroot

2-3 whole beetroot
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp agave syrup

Quick-pickled red onions

2 small red onions
1 lemon
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
2 tbsp cane sugar

Salad

1 bag of lamb’s lettuce
100 ml quinoa
½ fennel bulb
1 avocado
1-2 pears
Feta cheese
Toasted hazelnuts

Dressing

2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp agave syrup
1 garlic clove
Salt, pepper

Method

1. Baked beetroot

Preheat the oven to 200 °C and line a baking tray with baking paper. Peel the beetroot, cut in half and slice. Toss in a marinade made from olive oil, balsamic vinegar and agave syrup. Finish with a good pinch of freshly ground pepper. Bake in the oven until caramelised and just tender, about 25 mins. Turn once during cooking.

2. Quick-pickled red onions

Thinly slice the red onions, preferably using a mandoline slicer, and transfer to a bowl. Grate the zest and squeeze the juice of ½ the lemon (save the other half for later) into the bowl. Add the white wine vinegar and cane sugar and mix well. Leave to pickle for about 15 mins. Stir regularly so that all the red onion is coated with the pickling liquor.

3. Prepare the salad

Rinse the quinoa in a sieve and cook according to pack instructions. Finely slice the fennel, preferably using a mandoline slicer, and toss with the juice of the remaining ½ lemon. Thinly slice the pear and avocado and chop the hazelnuts.

4. Prepare the dressing

Combine the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, agave syrup and finely grated garlic clove to make a dressing. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

5. To serve

Arrange the lamb’s lettuce, fennel and quinoa on your preferred platter or in a bowl. Toss with approx. ⅓ of the dressing. Top with the baked beetroot, pear and avocado, and garnish with the pickled red onion, crumbled feta and toasted hazelnuts. Pour over the remaining dressing just before serving.