This salad works really well as a filling evening meal and keeps well, so make extra to have for lunch the next day. The bright yellow ginger turmeric dressing adds colour, flavour and a bit of an immune boost – you can find more information about the health properties of turmeric and turmeric supplements here. The recipe is vegan, dairy and grain free but you can add meat, dairy or grains to bulk out the salad (see the suggestions below). We use seeds to thicken the salad dressing – blitzing a handful of seeds in a salad dressing helps to make it rich and thick without the need for mayo or yoghurt and adds a bit of extra fat.
Roasted beetroot and carrot salad with shredded greens
2 large carrots
1 sweet potato
1 beetroot
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper
optional: handful of seeds or nuts (pumpkin / sunflower / pine nuts)
150g greens (we used a mix of kale and chard but you could use rocket / watercress / spring greens)
large handful fresh herbs (parsley / mint / coriander)
1 avocado, diced
juice and zest of ½ lemon
1 tbsp olive oil
1tsp maple syrup
- Preheat the oven to 180*c. Slice the carrots in half lengthways and place in a roasting tin. Peel the beetroot and chop into bite size cubes. Chop the sweet potato into bite size cubes. Add the beetroot and sweet potato to the roasting tin. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and olive oil and roast for 40 minutes
- 5 minutes before the end of cooking time, add any seeds or nuts to toast them
- While the vegetables roast, prepare the greens. If using greens with a tough stem such as kale, remove the stem and finely slice. Place in a bowl.
- Finely chop the herbs and add to the greens (keeping a few back for finishing the salad) along with the avocado. Pour over the lemon zest and juice, olive oil and maple syrup and season with salt and pepper.
- When the vegetables are roasted, slice the carrots on the diagonal into bit size chunks. Add the roasted vegetables and seeds/nuts to the greens and stir through.
- Optional Additions:
- crumbled feta or goats cheese
- sausages (bake them in the oven in the same tray as the vegetables for a simple one pot dish)
- 100g chickpeas (rinsed and drained)
- 200g cooked quinoa
Turmeric and Ginger Dressing
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tbsp fresh chopped ginger
½ garlic clove
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp sunflower seeds
1 tsp maple syrup
salt and pepper to taste
Place all of the ingredients in a food processor and blend to a smooth consistency. Season with salt and pepper.