This roasted beet and goat cheese salad with pistachios and pomegranate is the perfect salad for company or holiday meals, filled with many colors, textures and fall flavors.
I'll be the first to admit -- I'm not a big salad person. I really, really want to be. And I'm not exaggerating when I say that this beet and goat cheese salad with pistachios and pomegranate might just convert me to salad person status for good.
With an arugula-spinach mix as the base, plus roasted beets, goat cheese, pomegranate gems and pistachios and topped off with a zippy (but not too zippy) champagne vinaigrette dressing, what's not to love? All the different textures and flavors come together to make a fresh and complex salad that's perfect for company, and for serving alongside your protein of choice.
This is my go-to salad for Thanksgiving and Christmas, because everybody loves it. Even the non-salad people like myself. Also? If we're being honest? All the red and green makes it feel like a salad that was MEANT for the holidays.
The best part about this salad? It looks fancy, but it's pretty easy to make. If you're serving it for a holiday dinner, go ahead and make it easy on yourself by peeling the pomegranate, roasting the beets and chopping the pistachios the night before (or a few days -- don't worry, those beets keep just fine in the fridge) so you can toss it all together in minutes. If you're making it ahead, store the different elements separately so they stay fresh and combine just before serving.
How To Make Roasted Beet and Goat Cheese Salad With Pistachios and Pomegranate
Roast the beets. Trim the beet greens and wash thoroughly in running water, then dry the beets and wrap them together in aluminum foil. Place them in an oven preheated to 400º F for an hour, then remove when a paring knife slips easily into the beet. Let the beets cool and rub the outsides with a paper towel to remove the skins, then cut in half lengthwise and slice into half-moons.
Peel the pomegranates. The easiest way to extract those juicy pomegranate gems from the fruit is to cut the top and bottom off the pomegranate and find the five ridges -- then, cut through the skin along the ridges and break the pomegranate into sections. Next, fill a large bowl with cold water and gently remove the arils (the little gems) from the pith (the white part) -- the gems will sink to the bottom and the pith will float to the top. Simply skim the pith off the top of the water and drain!
Chop the pistachios. Shell and roughly chop the pistachios and set aside. Easy peasy.
Make the dressing. Whisk together all of the vinaigrette ingredients except for the olive oil, then, slowly drizzle in the olive oil and whisk until emulsified. Alternatively, you can add all ingredients to a blender and blend until emulsified.
Throw it all together. Toss together the greens and drizzle with about 4 tablespoons of the dressing (plus more to taste). Layer the beets, pomegranate gems, pistachios and crumbled goat cheese on top; toss together and top with a few turns of salt and pepper before serving immediately.
HOT TIP: I'm all about repurposing different parts of your veggies, so don't throw them away -- they're great in this penne pasta with beet greens and artichokes!
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Roasted Beet and Goat Cheese Salad with Pistachios and Pomegranate
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 60 mins
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: Salad
- Cuisine: American
Description
This roasted beet and goat cheese salad with pistachios and pomegranate is the perfect salad for company or holiday meals, filled with many colors, textures and fall flavors.
Ingredients
For the salad:
- 1 ½-2 pounds beets, washed, greens removed
- ½ cup shelled pistachios
- One whole pomegranate
- 4 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
- 5 ounces baby spinach
- 5 ounces baby arugula
For the dressing:
- 1 garlic clove, grated
- 2 tablespoons dijon mustard
- 1 small shallot, minced (about 2 tablespoons minced)
- ¼ cup champagne vinegar
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 teaspoon dried chives
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Trim the beet greens and wash thoroughly in running water, then dry the beets and wrap them together in aluminum foil. Place them in an oven preheated to 400º F for an hour, then remove when a paring knife slips easily into the beet. Wait until the beets cool and remove the peels with a paper towel; slice beets in half lengthwise then into half-moons and set aside.
- Cut the top and bottom off the pomegranate and find the five ridges -- then, cut through the skin along the ridges and break the pomegranate into sections. Next, fill a large bowl with cold water and gently remove the arils from the pith; drain the arils and set aside on a paper towel to dry.
- Shell and roughly chop the pistachios; set aside.
- Whisk together the garlic, mustard, shallot, vinegar, lemon juice, honey, chives and salt. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil and whisk until emulsified.
- Toss together the arugula and spinach and drizzle with about 4 tablespoons of the dressing (plus more to taste). Layer the beets, pomegranate gems, pistachios and crumbled goat cheese on top of the greens; toss together and top with a few turns of salt and pepper and serve immediately.
Notes
Dressing can be made several days ahead of time. If making the salad ahead, store all the elements separately and toss together just before serving.
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