3medium size beets (I used orange beets but you could use any kind of beets)
1cupcoarse salt
someolive oil for oiling the beets
other salad ingredients:
1/2cupblack lentils, washed and drained (I always soak black lentils for at least a couple of hours)
2cupsbeet greens, coarsely chopped. please divide into stems and leaves
3/4cupwalnuts, coarsely chopped
1cuproquette (you can use more if you'd like)
for the dressing:
3tablespoonsolive oil
2tablespoonspomegranate concentrate
1tablespoonbalsamic cream vinegar
salt and pepper to taste (at least 1/2 teaspoon each)
Instructions:
Roasting beets - Preheat the oven to 400°F/200°C . Rinse the beets well, chop the leaves if any and keep aside. Line a small trey or other dish suitable for the oven in baking paper and pour on it the coarse salt, which will be the bedding for beets. Grease the beets with a little olive oil, place them on the coarse salt and bake in the oven for one and a half to two hours, depending on the size of the beets. At the end of the roasting the beets will be squishy and soft.
In a small pot, place the black lentils and the beet greens, along with a large amount of water (like pasta). Bring to a boil and cook for 20-25 minutes, depending on the soaking time of the lentils. 5 minutes before cooking is finished, add the beet leaves, stir, and continue cooking. Strain the mixture and cool.
Make the dressing- In a small jar with a lid (or any other utensil) place all the ingredients for the dressing and shake / mix until the dressing is smooth and even.
Assembling the salad - In a large bowl put the mixture of lentils and beets, walnuts, roquette and feta cheese. Keep some of the walnuts and feta aside, for decoration at the end. Peel the beets, they should be peeled easily, and cut them into large pieces - squares or eighths, and add to the other ingredients. Sprinkle most of the dressing over, keep slightly aside, and gently stir until fully covered.
Transfer the salad to a serving bowl. Top it with the walnuts and feta cheese that we kept on the side and sprinkled over the rest of the sauce.
Notes:
Instead of beet greens you can use kale, without the stems, or spinach.
The salad can be kept in the fridge for up to 3 days, and is also fun to eat cold. If preparing in advance, or preparing a large amount, you should of course add the roquette just before serving.