Roasted Beet & Grapefruit Salad

           I know most of you are tempted to close your screen just based on the title of this post. Roasted Beet and Grapefruit salad?!? That was pretty much what I thought when I came across this recipe in Chatelaine. It seemed too 'out there', too adventurous. But the same day I saw the recipe, my friend Kennedy blogged about trying new vegetables on her blog Running After Balance. Her goal is to try a new vegetable every week, so that she isn't eating the exact.same.food. each week.

             Well, since I have little shame and am easily inspired, I am going to copy Kennedy and pick up a new fruit or vegetable at the grocery store once a week. Then I'm going to make a new recipe, and then I'm going to blog about it. Good or bad, I will let you know.  I think its a fabulous idea, and I am looking forward to adding new foods to my palette.  Hence where I got the inspiration to make a roasted beet and grapefruit salad.

             Friends, I was most skeptical. I read the ingredient list carefully, knowing that I couldn't make any substitutions when I had NO idea what I was making in the first place.  I debated scrapping the "Vegetable of the Week" idea completely. But then I re-read Kennedy's post and decided to go for it.

             This recipe is very, very good. The roasted beets & grapefruit are a wonderful compliment, and the salad is utterly refreshing. Its easy to find all of the ingredients, and very inexpensive to make. I highly recommend making this as a starter for a dinner party. Its impressive and unique while being simple to make. My only caveat would be that you have to really like both grapefruit AND beets. The husband doesn't really like beets. He did try this though, and said it was "much better than he thought."

Ingredients:

4 beets, trimmed & washed

2 grapefruits

1 tbsp red wine vinegar

1 tbsp horseradish

salt and pepper

1 tsp parsley

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 400F. Rinse beets with water so they are damp. Lightly wrap in foil and roast in oven, about 60 minutes until they are tender. Let cool (about 1 hour) then peel & slice thinly (1 beet should make 8 slices).
2. Cut ends of grapefruit, then peel including the whites. Slice into rounds. Put into bowl with beets.
3. Combine vinegar, horseradish, salt, pepper & parsley. Drizzle over beet & grapefruit, then toss gently to coat. Serve immediately.

Source: Adapted from Chatelaine.