Roasted Beet Salad with Goat Cheese, Walnuts & Honey-Dijon Vinaigrette
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This pretty roasted beet salad makes the perfect starter for a dinner party.
This beet salad with goat cheese and walnuts is my go-to dinner party salad. I don’t think I’ve ever served it without sending a few people home with the recipe. Years ago, I would roast my own beets, but high-quality vacuum-packed roasted beets, such as Love Beets, are now available in the produce section of most supermarkets, which makes the salad a breeze to prepare. Be sure to dress the greens at the last minute so they don’t get soggy, and top the salad with the beets as opposed to mixing them in (tossing the beets with the salad will turn everything pink!).
What You’ll Need to Make Roasted Beet Salad with Honey-Dijon Vinaigrette
Step-by-Step Instructions
In a small bowl, combine the honey, Dijon mustard, red wine vinegar, shallots, salt and pepper.
Whisk to combine. Then, whisking constantly, slowly add the oil in a steady stream. (Alternatively, add all the ingredients to a jar, cover with the lid, and shake vigorously to blend.)
Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.
Place the greens in a large bowl, drizzle with about half of the vinaigrette and toss to combine. Add as much of the remaining vinaigrette as desired and toss again. Arrange the greens on a large platter or divide onto plates, then top with beets, walnuts and goat cheese. Serve immediately.
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- Mesclun Salad with Goat Cheese, Maple-Glazed Pecans & Maple Dijon Vinaigrette
- Baby Kale Salad with Lemon, Parmesan & Crispy Roasted Chickpeas
Roasted Beet Salad with Walnuts, Goat Cheese & Honey-Dijon Vinaigrette
This pretty roasted beet salad makes the perfect starter for a dinner party.
Ingredients
For the Vinaigrette
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1½ tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1½ tablespoons minced shallots
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
For the Salad
- 10 ounces mixed greens
- About ½ lb vacuum-packed roasted beets, cut into wedges (see note)
- ½ cup walnuts, coarsely chopped
- 3 ounces goat cheese
Instructions
For the Vinaigrette
- In a small bowl, whisk together the honey, Dijon mustard, red wine vinegar, shallots, salt and pepper. Whisking constantly, slowly add the oil in a steady stream. (Alternatively, add all the ingredients to a jar, cover with the lid, and shake vigorously to blend.) Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.
For the Salad
- Place the greens in a large bowl, drizzle with about half of the vinaigrette and toss to combine. Add as much of the remaining vinaigrette as desired and toss again. Arrange the greens on a large platter or divide onto plates, then top with beets, walnuts and goat cheese. Serve immediately.
- Note: If you'd like to roast your own beets, you'll need 1 bunch of medium beets (about 3). Preheat oven to 425°F and set an oven rack to the middle position. Wipe or scrub the beets clean, then trim stems down to one-inch (leave "tails" on). Place the beets on a large piece of aluminum foil, drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil, then wrap foil around the beets to form a neat packet. Roast directly on a rack in the middle of the oven until tender, about 1 hour. Test for doneness by piercing the largest beet with a knife. If it enters easily, it's done. Unwrap the beets and let sit until cool enough to handle. Use your hands or a paring knife to peel the skin, then cut into wedges.
- Make-Ahead Instructions: The vinaigrette can be made up to 4 days ahead and stored in the refrigerator. Before serving, let sit out at room temperature for about 30 minutes, and then shake to re-emulsify.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (6 servings)
- Calories: 242
- Fat: 21g
- Saturated fat: 3g
- Carbohydrates: 11g
- Sugar: 9g
- Fiber: 2g
- Protein: 4g
- Sodium: 322mg
- Cholesterol: 7mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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Another delicious dish, agree with many reviewers – all the recipes are fail safe, original tasty and often so fast. Used store pre cooked vacuum packed beets, lightly toasted my walnuts otherwise as written. Enjoyed learning about all the different dressing you make, now doubling dressing volumes to use later on mixed greens for last minute meals. Both cookbooks on order from our local bookstore; decided they are a must have for the value of everyday variety, flavour, and reliability.
Thanks so much for your support with the cookbooks – hope you enjoy them!
This salad is amazing because its good for you and tastes awesome!!
I had a couple of cans of beets leftover from the lockdown, so I decided to make this recipe. I believe fresh or vacuum packed beets would have been better, but I’m enjoying this! I used arugula instead of mixed greens.
This salad was AMAZING!! My family doesn’t like beets, but they enjoyed it very much. I think the dressing made it great for them. The first time I roasted the beets, second time all I had was canned – not so much on that one. But with the roasted beets, it was to die for!!
My husband loves Roasted Beet Salad. A local restaurant serves one of the best so I decided to re-create it for dinner. The thought, however, of turning on the oven @ 400* for an hour here in ATL when it’s already 1000* with 500% humidity (ok maybe it was only 95* w 97% humidity), was not something I was eager to do.
Browsing thru my recipe collection, I ran across your recipe using the vacuum-packed LOVE Beets. What a genius idea! My local market had only the sliced pickled style in stock so I drizzled them with a bit of EVOO and S&P; Popped them in the toaster oven @ air-fry for a very few minutes to try to bring out a bit of roasted flavor.
I used mixed butter greens coarsely shredded instead of mixed greens as it was what I had on hand. I also used chopped pistachios instead of walnuts – husband preference. But the dressing … Oh.My! I could eat it with a spoon; it was so good. I plated on individual plates and drizzled the whole salad with a bit of reduced balsamic vinegar.
Thank you @OnceUponAChef for a wonderful light dinner salad for a DAWG Day Sunday in ATL.
Would this lovely recipe work with bleu cheese crumbles instead of goat cheese? We are having some guests for dinner who do not care for goat cheese. Thanks for your thoughts!
Definitely!
Jenn, I adore your recipes, not the least of which is this beet goat cheese salad. The flavors meld so well that it’s gone into my rotation. A loaf of bread and a glass of wine. Perfect!
My question is, I have a friend who hates beets and I know she would love this salad as she’s a big goat cheese fan. Is there anything you can suggest in lieu of the beets? No worries if not – your shaved brussel sprout and kale salad is divine! Thanks! Jan
Hi Jan, so glad you like the recipes! You could definitely substitute something for the beets. Strawberries, blueberries, or blackberries would also be delicious. I’d love to hear how it turns out if you try it with one of these!
I really loved this! The vinaigrette was made with Safflower oil for neutrality and was wonderful paired with the goat cheese (I used Cypress Grove “Purple Haze”). I toasted a combo of walnuts & pecans. While I roasted the beets for 1 hour as stated, I have found a much shorter/easier method for cooking beets. I microwave with 1 tablespoon of water in a covered dish on High for 6-8 minutes. They are very tender and don’t have the vitamins boiled out of them. Since they are coated in dressing, you won’t notice much difference.
Great recipe I made it twice and everyone loved it. I make the dressing to use on other salads. It has great flavor.
I made this for me and my fiance who hates beets. He loved it, and it was as good as the best beet and goat cheese salad I’ve ever had. I used golden beets and tossed a few of the beet leaves into the salad. Thanks for this recipe.
I was excited to try this recipe, but the shallots are way too strong! And I put less than a tablespoon! I had the salad for lunch and the bad taste lingered for hours. I had my doubts about adding the shallots in the first place, but I read vinegar cuts the taste of shallots, so I thought it might be ok. It’s not. I didn’t want to waste the dressing so I just tried a little more with dinner, but I can’t. It’s terrible. It’s going in the trash.
Rinse chopped onions (onion family) under cold running water to remove the strong sulfur taste (J Pepin). You probably got a really strong shallot – it happens occasionally.
Oh, lordy, this was awesome!
Hi Jen,
My daughter and I love beets so I want to try this recipe. Not sure what main dishes would pair well with it. Could you please make a suggestion or two? Really love all your recipes I’ve tried so far! Thanks for your help.
Hi Gail, This is a very versatile salad that could work with so many main dishes – I often serve it with simple salmon or steak.
Jenn,
Thanks for your reply! I’ll try the salad with our salmon this week.
Wonderful! And the pre-cooked beets are a marvelous find. I used pecan halves rather than walnuts and thought they were delicious, as was that dressing. I used a really good French goat cheese. Wouldn’t change a thing
Great recipe but I use olive oil instead, delicious salad thanks for the recipe 😊👍
After enjoying roasted beet salad with goat cheese at Pisgah Inn in North Carolina, I began a search for that very recipe. This one is as close as it gets! I have made it many times and often add in various things I have on hand. Today I added chopped artichoke hearts. The vinaigrette is the best. I used minced sweet onions and extra-virgin olive oil. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. It is hands down my favorite!
Delicious! I bought the beets with greens on. I added green apple slices, toasted walnuts and the beet greens to the spring mix. My PT asked me for the dressing recipe! Thank you!
Really looking forward to making this! Can I use pickled beets instead of roasted beets?
They’ll have a slightly different taste, but they’ll work. Hope you enjoy!
This was outstanding! Found the precooked beets at Wegmans..so easy. And I used a tip I read in the comments section…put all ingredients for the salad dressing into a wide mouth mason jar and used an immersion blender to mix. Thanks for another great..and healthy recipe!
Great recipe. I made it yesterday. Did not have shallot, so I eliminated it. Also used extra virgin olive oil, and it was wonderful. Will make it again.
The salad was great and was very easy to make. The vinaigrette was delicious!
5 star recipe! I make this all the time! Tastes like something from a fancy restaurant. If you like beets, this is a must try! I make the beets in my instant pot. I make the dressing in my mini chopper. So good! So good! *****
Jen, I made this salad a few days ago. We really enjoyed it! We like the salad ingredients a lot; the greens, goat cheese, beets, and walnuts really go together. The vinaigrette is special….unique and delicious!
I used to cook beets for salads. It was a little bit of trouble, so we didn’t have that type of salad often. Then, a few weeks ago I made a salad with beets in it (not this one), and discovered “Aunt Nellie’s Baby (whole pickled) Beets at our local Publix grocery store. We’ve had a few salads with Aunt Nellie’s Baby Beets since then, including your recipe. I recommend them.
Thanks for another delicious recipe!
Richard
I ended up using honey goat cheese, as the supermarket was out of regular; but it came out wonderful! Love this recipe!
Jen,
As with all of your salads (and recipes for that matter) this was absolutely delicious! I recently made a grilled romaine salad from a recipe I found on Food Network and it made me wonder if you’d ever experimented with a recipe for it? If so I’d love to try your version as your salad dressings are always spot on! Thanks for all that you do for us home cooks to keep our families happy and healthy! 🥰
Glad you enjoyed, Candice! I’ll add the grilled romaine salad to my list. 🙂
What do you think about adding quinoa to this salad to make it a bit more hearty?
Love that idea 🙂