Citrusy Roasted Beet Goat Cheese Salad

Happy New Year friends! Are you ready for a fresh start? Now that all the holiday eating and drinking is behind us, it is time for getting back to reality. I know I am ready to get back to the gym and start eating big salads for lunch and dinner. However, I have no intention of serving myself boring salads. That is why; I am here today with a meal-worthy salad made with wholesome ingredients that will help you start the year off right.

This post is sponsored by Kroger, but all opinions are mine.

This citrusy roasted beet goat cheese salad is my take on the classic beet and goat cheese salad that you see in almost every restaurant’s menu nowadays. However, for my version, I took things up a notch and added some surprising ingredients that made it even more delicious, filling, and healthy.

About This Citrusy Roasted Beet Goat Cheese Salad Recipe:

Initially, this was supposed to be a roasted beet and goat cheese salad topped off with black-eyed peas. The idea of using black-eyed peas came from my husband, who told me that eating them in New Years is a tradition and considered as good luck here in the southern states. Then as I was researching about it, I found an article that shed some light on the meaning behind it. Below is from that article:

“…a lot of people closely associate good luck with monetary gain. That’s where the greens come in (green is the color of U.S. currency). Any green will do, but the most common choices are collard, turnip, or mustard greens. Golden cornbread is often added to the Southern New Year’s meal, and a well-known phrase is, “Peas for pennies, greens for dollars, and cornbread for gold.” …”

After reading this, I decided to turn it into a green salad with roasted beets, goat cheese, and black-eyed peas. However, even with the creamy goat cheese it tasted a little bland. It needed something sweet to balance the tartness of the peas. That is when I decided to add a few slices of Cara Cara and blood oranges I found in Kroger earlier in the week. I love oranges, but Cara Cara oranges are my favorite fruit of all times. The addition of colorful oranges into the mix of roasted beets, fresh mixed greens, crunchy walnuts, and goat cheese turned this otherwise boring salad into a meal-worthy and filling salad with a ton of flavors.

In terms of the dressing, I continued the citrusy flavors and made an orange vinaigrette by mixing together some freshly squeezed orange juice with a splash of sherry vinegar and extra virgin olive oil. This happens to be my go-to vinaigrette recipe that I usually make with lemon juice, but surprisingly it worked perfectly with orange juice as well. Here, if you do not have sherry vinegar, you can use white wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar.

How to Cook Black-Eyed Peas:

Now admittedly, the only component of this recipe that takes a little bit of time is cooking the black-eyed peas. Some recipes on the internet require for them to be soaked at least for 2 hours, but my method requires no soaking.

Simply, let them come to a boil in a saucepan filled with water. Then turn it off and let it sit for an hour. Drain it and fill it with fresh water. Put it back on the stove in medium heat, let it come to a boil, turn down the heat to low and let it simmer for 15-20 minutes.

I have been using this method for years and it works perfectly every time. For this salad, I used only a cup of black-eyed peas. However, I usually cook a big batch and save the rest to add them to salads or soups throughout the week.

How To Serve:

Since it is the New Years Day and I need all the gold I can get my hands on in 2017, I served my salad with a few slices of jalapeno and scallion cornbread. The cornbread was a true splurge and accompanied my salad beautifully. However, I promise you that even without the cornbread this salad recipe is a healthy way the start the New Year without compromising any flavor or taste.

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OTHER HEALTHY SALAD RECIPES YOU MIGHT LIKE:

• Apple Salad
• Fall Harvest Salad
• Shaved Brussels Sprout Salad
• Brussel Sprout and Kale Salad
• Mexican Street Corn Pasta Salad
• Five Bean Salad
• Cowboy Caviar

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