Beet Lentil Salad with Feta and Walnuts
Roasted beets sliced into rounds and laid flat on a platter, with French green lentils dressed warm in a honey Dijon vinaigrette spooned over the top. Feta, toasted walnuts and celery leaves finish it. Layered rather than tossed, so nothing turns pink.
Ingredients
The Beets and Lentils
- 1 1/2 pounds small beets about 6, scrubbed and trimmed
- 2 sprigs rosemary roasted with the beets, then discarded
- 1 tablespoon olive oil for roasting
- 1 1/4 cups French green lentils rinsed and picked over, or beluga
- 4 cups water topped up with hot water if needed
- 2 cloves garlic crushed, removed after cooking
- 1 bay leaf removed after cooking
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt in the lentil water
The Honey Dijon Dressing
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon honey or maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
To Finish
- 2 large celery stalks thinly sliced on the day
- 1/3 cup roughly chopped celery leaves the pale inner ones
- 1 1/2 ounces walnuts toasted and chopped, about 1/3 cup
- 1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese from a block in brine
Instructions
Roast the Beets
- Heat the oven to 400F. Put the scrubbed beets and the rosemary sprigs in an oven-proof dish, drizzle with the tablespoon of olive oil and cover the dish tightly with foil.
- Roast 40 to 60 minutes depending on size, until a knife goes into the largest one with no resistance. Leave them until cool enough to handle but still warm, then rub the skins off with a paper towel and discard the rosemary. Work on a plate or a plastic board, since the juice stains wood permanently.
Cook the Lentils
- While the beets roast, put the lentils, crushed garlic, bay leaf and the teaspoon of salt in a medium pot with the 4 cups of water. Bring to a boil, drop to a bare simmer and cook uncovered 20 to 25 minutes, topping up with hot water so they stay just covered.
- Start tasting at 20 minutes. They should be tender with a little bite at the center and still whole. Old lentils can take 40 minutes, so go by taste rather than the clock. Drain them and pull out the garlic and bay leaf.
Dress the Lentils Warm
- Whisk the olive oil, Dijon, vinegar, honey, lemon juice, salt and pepper together until thick. Pour about two thirds of it over the drained lentils while they are still warm and stir well, then fold in the sliced celery and half the celery leaves.
Layer and Serve
- Slice the peeled beets into quarter-inch rounds with a serrated knife and lay them across a wide platter in a single overlapping layer. Spoon the remaining dressing over them.
- Pile the dressed lentils down the middle without stirring them into the beets, then scatter the feta, toasted walnuts and remaining celery leaves over the top. Serve cool rather than cold.
Notes
Layer, do not toss. Beet juice dyes everything it touches within a minute, so lay the sliced beets flat and spoon the lentils over them.
Dress the lentils while they are still warm. Warm pulses absorb vinaigrette; cold ones sit in it.
French green lentils or beluga only. Brown and green supermarket lentils are bred for soup and collapse into paste.
Roast the beets whole and unpeeled, covered with foil. The skins rub off with a paper towel while they are still warm.
Make-ahead: beets 3 days, dressed lentils 2 days and improving, dressing 1 week. Slice the celery on the day and add the walnuts and feta at the last minute.
Serve it cool rather than cold, about half an hour out of the refrigerator.
Nutrition values are an estimate.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 363kcal | Carbohydrates: 36g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Cholesterol: 5mg | Sodium: 690mg | Potassium: 732mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 120IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 75mg | Iron: 4mg