Greek Salad with Roasted Beets, Olives, and Feta

Name: Greek Salad with Roasted Beets, Olives, and Feta
Yield: Serves 4
Ingredients: 4 medium beets, preferably a mix of red, candy-striped, and gold, trimmed and scrubbed; 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil; Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper; 6 tablespoons red wine vinegar; 1/4 cup minced red onion; 1 teaspoon minced fresh red Thai chile or crushed red chile flakes, or to taste; 2 romaine hearts, halved lengthwise and sliced 1/2 inch thick at an angle; 6 celery heart stalks, sliced 1/4 inch thick at an angle, plus celery leaves for garnish; 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese; 3 ounces Niçoise olives, pitted and halved (1/2 cup); 1 tablespoon fresh oregano leaves, thinly sliced

January 24, 2012

I crave Greek salad year round, so in the winter, when tomatoes don’t taste great raw, I make it with roasted beets instead. This began as a home lunch, but I decided to try it out at some of my restaurants, too, and it’s turned out to be one of our most popular salads.

Recipe information

Yield
Serves 4

Ingredients

4 medium beets, preferably a mix of red, candy-striped, and gold, trimmed and scrubbed

4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

6 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1/4 cup minced red onion

1 teaspoon minced fresh red Thai chile or crushed red chile flakes, or to taste

2 romaine hearts, halved lengthwise and sliced 1/2 inch thick at an angle

6 celery heart stalks, sliced 1/4 inch thick at an angle, plus celery leaves for garnish

1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

3 ounces Niçoise olives, pitted and halved (1/2 cup)

1 tablespoon fresh oregano leaves, thinly sliced

Preparation

Step 1
Preheat the oven to 325°F.
Step 2
Put the beets on a large sheet of foil. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon of the oil and then season with salt and pepper. Wrap tightly and roast in the oven until a knife pierces through the beets easily, about 1 hour and 15 minutes. Unwrap, and when cool enough to handle, peel the beets and cut into wedges.
Step 3
Whisk together the vinegar, remaining 3 tablespoons oil, the onion, chile, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt.
Step 4
Arrange the beets on 4 serving plates. Drizzle with a little of the dressing and season with salt and pepper. Top with the romaine, celery, feta, and olives. Drizzle the remaining dressing all over. Season with salt and pepper and the oregano. Garnish with celery leaves. Serve immediately.

Reprinted with permission from Home Cooking with Jean-Georges: My Favorite Simple Recipes by Jean-Georges Vongerichten with Genevieve Ko. Copyright © 2011 by Jean-Georges Vongerichten; photographs copyright © 2011 by John Kernick. Published by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved. Jean-Georges Vongerichten is one of the most influential chefs in the world, having single-handedly redefined haute French cuisine, lightening and refining it by adding select Asian accents. He is the chef-owner of dozens of restaurants in fourteen cities around the world. His flagship restaurant, Jean Georges, at New York's Columbus Circle, is one of six restaurants in the United States to have been awarded three coveted Michelin stars; it received four stars from the New York Times. The winner of multiple James Beard Foundation awards, he lives in New York City and Waccabuc, New York, with his family. Genevieve Ko is a cookbook author and the senior food editor at Good Housekeeping magazine. She has written for Martha Stewart Living, Gourmet, and Fine Cooking and lives in New York City with her family.

TagsSalad Beet Root Vegetable Vegetable Feta Cheese Dairy Romaine Lettuce Leafy Greens Olive Side Dinner Gluten Free Nut Free Vegetarian Easy Winter Cookbooks

Recipe information

Ingredients

Preparation

Step 1

Step 2

Step 3

Step 4

Recipe notes