Roasted Beet and Goat Cheese Crostini

The Inspiration…

Last weekend our friends hosted a fabulous brunch. There were baked goods, bacon, and dips galore. Ya know, all the good stuff! I even took along my Cran-Apple Braided Pastry. But my favorite part was the craft cocktails our friend Brandon made. I think I consumed one (or three) of the best palomas I’ve ever had. (Don’t worry - I will beg him for the recipe!) While I was drinking one of these palomas I started thinking about what kinds of foods would pair nicely with it. I flashed back to last summer when I had an abundance of beets from our CSA membership. Silky roasted beets, tangy goat cheese, some citrus and thyme. Now THAT sounds like it would pair perfectly with the sweet and tart drink in my hand. A few days later I just had to make some to test out. So, if you’re reading this Brandon, I’m happy to report back that I’m ready to put the two together! While I work on him for the drink recipe, you should try out this Roasted Beet and Goat Cheese Crostini appetizer. It’s so good you won’t care what drink you have in front of you anyway.

I opted for a mixture of both red and golden beets. The yellow beets tend to get a little bit sweeter when roasted, plus the contrast of colors is stunning. Get those cleaned up by cutting off the tops and the dangling roots. Scrub them well and then we’ll get ready to roast!

Preheat your oven to 400. Line a baking sheet with foil. Place your trimmed and washed beets on the foil, along with about a TBSP of water. Top with a second piece of foil and crimp the edges together to make a packet. You’ll bake them for an hour, let cool slightly, then peel the skins off.

Pro tip: Wear gloves as the beets will easily stain your hands. You can also use a paper towel to help you rub the skins off. They should come off easily after they bake.

Now that you have your naked beets, we can dress them. (Haha. Food humor at its finest.) You’ll take each beet, slice into thirds, then cut each slice into 9 pieces. That means you’ll make two cuts one way, then turn it 90 degrees and make two more cuts. But first, let's take a minute to appreciate the beauty of nature. The color of these beets are stunning!!!

Once you have diced up your beets. Add in your olive oil, vinegars, fresh orange juice, thyme, and salt. The longer you let this sit, the more flavor the beets absorb. You can even make this the day before and it will be extra delicious!

Next, you’ll want to whip up the goat cheese spread. Combine your goat cheese, mayonnaise, and sour cream. Mix in some salt and chives. You can use dried chives if you don’t have any fresh on hand. The tangy. creamy goat cheese is the perfect accompaniment to the silky, sweet beets. Grill up some baguettes and dig in!

Bonus: The leftover beets are super delicious on a salad the next day!

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Roasted Beets and Goat Cheese Crostini

Yield: 8

Author: Julia Goodrich

These simple roasted beets add tons of flavor to some chive and goat cheese spread. The combination is sweet and tangy. The colors are stunning! Make this for your next get-together and your guests will be blown away!

Ingredients

For the beets

• 6-8 beets
• 1/2 an orange, juiced
• olive oil
• white balsamic vinegar
• white wine vinegar
• fresh thyme
• salt

For the goat cheese spread

• 1 ounce goat cheese, softened
• 2 TBSP sour cream
• 2 TBSP mayonnaise
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp chives

Instructions

For the goat cheese spread

1. Let the goat cheese soften to room temperature so that it is easier to mix.
2. Add in your sour cream, mayonnaise, salt, and chives.
3. Mix well and serve. If you make ahead and refrigerate, let it sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes prior to serving so that it will be more spreadable.

Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.