July 14, 2017

Roasted Beets with Candied Pecans, Goat Cheese, and Mint

Name: Roasted Beets with Candied Pecans, Goat Cheese, and Mint
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 1 h 5 min
Ingredients: 4-5 large Beets; 1C pecans; 1/4C maple syrup; 1 Tbsp cinnamon; 1 tsp nutmeg; 1/4C Chevre (goat cheese); 2 Tbsp mint

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Need a great side for a meal or a delicious light lunch that’s bursting with flavor? Make up these Roasted Beets with Candied Pecans, Goat Cheese, and Mint.

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A Change of Heart for Roasted Beets

Growing up beets never appealed to me; I’m picturing those pickled beets you see on some salad bars that are just swimming in a red juice. How anyone could want to eat those just baffled me. They stained everything they touched and the taste left much to be desired. It wasn’t until I was older that I discovered roasted beets, and I immediately fell in love with these gems. I couldn’t believe how different they were; their color, their texture, and especially how they tasted. How could a change in preparation make such a difference for one food?

During a recent trip to the farmer’s market, fresh beets in hand, we sought out ways to make this simple dish shine. By the time we had returned home (with a detour to the grocery store to get the last few ingredients), we had an idea and a plan. The journey to discovering this recipe was truly a delectable one.

This dish surprised both me and my tastebuds with its unique combination of ingredients that come together spectacularly; the flavors are unique, rich, and complex in every bite. The versatility of this dish means you can prepare it for an easy lunch, serve it alongside a main course for a hearty dinner, or serve up a big bowl of it at your next family get-together.

fresh beets, sprigs of mint, sliced chevre cheese, and pecans on a cutting board

Roasting beets requires minimal hands-on time, no fancy ingredients, and comes out tasting amazing. Just wash up the beets, cut the stems off, wrap them in foil, and roast them in the oven on a Baking Sheet at around 375F for 30-45 minutes, until fork tender. Don’t worry about peeling the beets before you roast them; let the beets cool a bit once out of the oven, and then the skins should slide right off with almost no effort. To speed up cook time, you can also cut up larger beets into halves or quarters. Take care when preparing them, however; the beet juice can stain counters, cutting boards, and even hands. Use Food Prep Gloves to make clean up easier. We use red beets in this dish, but I bet golden beets would be delicious as well! There are many tasty dishes you can make with the beet stems, so hold on to those for another time.

Goat cheese is a perfect match in this dish, offering a nice tanginess to compliment the earthiness and richness of the roasted beets. Glazed Pecans add some sweetness and spice (Joelle and I are all about this) to the dish, as well as making it a bit heartier.

glazed pecans in a saucepan for roasted beets

Fresh mint adds some great brightness and color on top to round it out and really make it all pop. It’s even better if you happen to have some in your herb garden! We know that many people don’t like the mint flavor, however, so we will often serve the mint on the side and let people top as desired.

This is also a great recipe to make ahead of time for family dinners or get-togethers (or if you’re like us and prepare several meals at a time each week to save time). If you do go this route, be sure to keep the ingredients separate and assemble it right before serving for best flavor and to keep the textures of the ingredients intact.