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Salad with beets, goat cheese, oranges, and arugula on a white plate with an orange striped background

citrusy beet salad

This beet salad with citrus, apple, arugula, and goat cheese will quickly become your go-to! It's easy enough for a weeknight and delicious enough for a special occasion.
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Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Course Salad
Servings 4 people as a side

Ingredients
  

For the dressing

  • Juice of 1 lemon should be about 1/4 cup of juice
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1/4 cup olive oil

For the salad

  • 1 bunch of beets about 5 small beets
  • 1 5- ounce package of arugula
  • 1 Sumo citrus peeled and separated into wedges
  • 1 apple sliced thinly
  • 1 small onion sliced thinly
  • 1 log goat cheese 4 ounces
  • 1 tablespoon crushed pistachios

Instructions
 

  • Roast the beets. Preheat the oven to 350. Place each beet on a piece of foil. Add a drizzle of oil and rub to coat the beet in it. Repeat for all beets. Roast for 40 minutes to an hour, until the beets are fork-tender. The timing will depend on your oven and how thick the beets are.
  • While the beets are roasting, make the dressing. Add the lemon juice to a liquid measuring cup. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil, whisking vigorously to ensure the dressing emulsifies.
  • Once the beets are done, remove them from the oven and unwrap the foil. Let them cool for 10-15 minutes, then peel them. Using a spoon or the dull side of a paring knife, scrape the peels off. They should come off easily. You can do this in the sink under running water to avoid staining anything. Cut the beets into 1” chunks.
  • Assemble the salad. Place arugula in the serving dish you’ll be using, then add the dressing and toss. Next, scatter the onions, citrus and apple slices on top. Then, arrange the beets on top. Heads up — the beets will color anything they touch! This won’t affect the taste, but the apples will pick up color from the beets. Next, scatter the goat cheese crumbles over the salad, then the pistachios. Enjoy!

Notes

  1. If your bunch of beets comes with the tops attached, use the greens in a different recipe! My favorite way to use them is to turn them into pesto, but here are some other ways to use them. Whatever you do, don’t let them go to waste!
  2. This salad is best eaten shortly after you assemble it. The arugula will get soggy if it sits too long in the dressing. If you plan on having leftovers, assemble each serving individually and store the salad components separately in the fridge. They will keep for at least 3 days!
  3. You can roast the beets and make the dressing up to a few days ahead of time! Just keep them in the refrigerator until you’re ready to use them.