_900.png "Roasted Beet & Burrata Salad With Honey and Hazelnut Pesto")
Roasted beets are a seasonal favourite of ours and are absolutely amazing in this recipe! This recipe features our organic mixed beets from our friends at Cookstown Greens. Each of the four different beet varieties in this mix provide a unique and beautiful flavour that takes this salad to the next level.
Their white beets and chiogga (candy cane beets) are surprisingly sweet while the golden and deep red beets are more earthy, striking a perfect balance in this dish.
Cookstown's hearty mix microgreens make up the base of this salad. A crunchy mix of pea shoots, sunflower shoots, and radish microgreens, these mild, nutty greens really bring an exceptional texture to this salad in contrast to the soft burrata and roasted beets.
And speaking of burrata, this HEALTHY serving of burrata is some of the smoothest, creamiest, freshest burrata you'll ever taste. Seriously a must-try on it's own but even more delicious when paired with the other amazing local ingredients in this recipe.
Drizzled with some local honey from Rosewood Estates, a hazelnut pesto, and sprinkled with lightly toasted hazelnuts, this recipe is the perfect sharing plate for cheese and beet lovers alike!
Meet Our Farmers & Producers
Cookstown Greens
Cookstown Greens is a family-run farm located 1 hour north of Toronto in Essa township that grows over 120 varieties of the best certified organic vegetables, greens, seedlings, garnishes and edible flowers!
Their beautiful organic mixed beets and Hearty Mix microgreens are showcased in this fresh and delicious burrata and beet salad.
Cookstown leaves part of their land untouched and use non-intensive farming methods, which contributes to Cookstown's biodiversity. Cookstown Greens consistently practices ethical and responsible standards in their farming practices.
Bella Casara Burrata by Quality Cheese
Located in Vaughan, Quality Cheese is owned and operated by the Borgo Brothers. They are award winning cheese producers who pride themselves in using only the freshest milk and ingredients, paying attention to every detail, and using the best practices and techniques to make great cheese.
Rosewood Estates
The amazing local honey in this recipe is from our friends at Rosewood Estates Winery, a family owned and operated winery and meadery located in the Niagara region.
Rosewood Estates uses sustainable bee-keeping practices and integrated pest management.
Ingredients
For the Salad
- Cookstown Greens Hearty Mix microgreens
- 1 x ball of Bella Casara by Quality Cheese burrata
- 1 x package Cookstown Greens organic mixed beets
For the Hazelnut Pesto
- 1/2 cup hazelnut oil
- 2 big handfuls fresh basil leaves, about 2 loosely packed cups
- 2 tbsp toasted hazelnuts, chopped
- 1 tbsp Rosewood Estates honey
- Juice of a lemon
- Salt and pepper to taste
Garnish
- 2 tbsp toasted hazelnuts, halved
- 1 tbsp Rosewood Estates honey
Method
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Peel your beets one colour at a time, remove the stems and the roots and cut in half. Then cut each half into two or 3 wedges so you have beet slices that are about 1 inch thick.
*Tip: To avoid the colour of your darker beets transferring to your lighter beets, start with preparing your lightest coloured beets before moving on to your darker beets. Or, you can rinse your knife and peeler before moving on to your darker beets. You'll be able to tell which beets are your lighter beets (white and golden beets) and which are your darker beets (deep red and chioggia) by the colour of their skin.
Sort your beets by colour as your slice them on a plate. Next, prepare a square of tin foil for each colour of beets you have that is large enough to create an individual packet for each colour of beet. Pour a little bit of olive oil in the centre of each tin foil square and add beet wedges of the same colour to separate packets.
Fold up the sides to create a sealed packet and place each of the individual packets on a baking sheet (if you used golden, white, red and chiogga beets there will be 4 packets in total). Roast them in the oven for about 45 minutes or until they are tender.
On another baking sheet, spread out your hazelnuts (4 tablespoons total) and place them in the oven with the roasting beets to toast for 5 mins.
Once your hazelnuts are toasted, you can start to prepare your hazelnut pesto. Simply combine your basil leaves, lemon juice, and 1 tablespoon of honey in a food processor or blender until the basil is well broken down.
Roughly chop 2 tablespoons of your toasted hazelnuts and add it to the food processor and continue to process. Leave the rest of the hazelnuts for garnishing your salad.
In a steady stream, add the hazelnut oil (or olive oil) to the food processer and process until smooth. You want this to be a smooth "pesto" sauce so add more oil if the mixture is too thick (it should pour easily). Add salt to taste, and more lemon juice if you prefer more acidity!
When your beets are done roasting, remove from the oven and open the packets and allow to cool. Let the beets cool and toss them lightly in hazelnut oil to really infuse that flavour.
Once your beets are cool to the touch, you can start to plate your salad. To plate the salad, spread your Cookstown Hearty Mix microgreens on a platter or plate. Remove your burrata from the tub and place it carefully in the centre of the platter.
Arrange your beet wedges around the cheese, and sprinkle your toasted hazelnuts around the cheese.
Drizzle a teaspoon of honey over the salad and burrata. Lastly, drizzle your hazelnut pesto over the salad.
Add a crack of fresh ground pepper and some sea salt to the top of the burrata.
Serve immediately with crusty bread, crostini or your favourite crackers!
Did You Try This Recipe?
If so, we'd love to see your finished product of your Roasted Beet & Burrata Salad! Share a photo and tag us on Instagram @themarketat100kmfood!
