Thursday, April 5, 2012

Beet Salad with Walnuts--This Time from Georgia


Most of the beet dishes are about beets only. Their delicate taste can be enhanced by spices but cannot be overshadowed by them. So whenever I post a beet recipe I usually place a picture of beets at the top of the post. But I already shared so many beet recipes that I am running out of ideas how to show them in the most appealing way. After all, they are just regular beets, nothing more.

At my home we eat a lot of beets and we eat them often. We love them so much that sometimes I just roast them and add to green salads, drizzled with pomegranate vinegar and oil. Recently I have been making a beet salad which I discovered not so long ago. I make it for lunch and serve just with bread sandwiches with ham or the Italian mortadela.

I think it comes from Georgia and it is a bit different than we serve it in Poland, because of the added walnuts. It also has mayonnaise, which I hardly eat these days, but it is really a tiny amount just so the beets get kind of slightly smothered in it but it does not make the whole salad too heavy or too greasy. Finely chopped walnuts are almost undetectable and just give a bit of crunchy texture to the smooth beets. Because in Poland we eat a lot of beet salad for Easter and we add beet-horseradish preserve to meats and sausages, I thought about sharing this recipe today.


Beet Salad with Walnuts

Ingredients:
4 medium beets roasted or cooked, peeled off,
2 tbsp walnuts, finely chopped,
1 garlic clove, minced,
2 tbsp mayonnaise,
salt and pepper to taste.


Preparation:
1. Grate the beets on a grater, preferably the julienne style.
2. In a medium bowl make the sauce: mix mayonnaise, garlic, salt, and pepper. Add beets and mix with the sauce. Add finely chopped walnuts and mix again.

Serve with cold cuts, roasted meats, or just good, rye bread.