Recipe Yields 6 Servings

Copyright: Bluebird Grain Farms

Ingredients

3-4 medium-sized beets, tops removed & trimmed

1 bay leaf

1/3  C white wine

sprigs of fresh thyme

1 C  Bluebird’s Einka & Lentil Blend

2 oranges (blood oranges if in season) 

1 C small red onion, thinly sliced 

3 T sherry vinegar

1/4 C extra virgin olive oil

½ tsp sugar

¼ tsp smoked paprika, 

4oz Feta, crumbled

1 C fresh parsley leaves chopped

1/4 C  Fresh Dill, chopped

Fresh Black Pepper to taste

Method

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. 

Roast Beets: In a metal baking pan, sized to fit the whole beets in a single layer (8×8 or 9×9), add wine, bay leaf, a pinch of salt & thyme sprigs. Rub all over with olive oil and place on top of herbs. Cover tightly with foil and roast until beets are tender, about 50-80 minutes depending on beet size. Remove foil, let beets cool until easily handled, remove skin. Cut beets in ½ and then into wedges. Set aside. 

Cook Einka & Lentils: In a medium saucepan add Einka & Lentil Blend to 6 cups of water, a pinch of salt, bring to simmer. Turn down heat & cook uncovered until tender but not mushy, about 25 minutes. Drain the water and spread out on a rimmed baking sheet to cool. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and a little salt.

Oranges: Cut off the top and bottom of oranges, remove peel & pith with a sharp knife running down the sides of orange. Then remove orange segments from the orange membrane. Place them  in a bowl. Use a few segments, and squeeze out the juice over remaining oranges.  Discard membranes. Set aside.

Dressing: Whisk sherry vinegar with olive oil, salt, sugar, and paprika to taste. Peel & cut the onion in ½ and slice thinly (about 1c total onion) and add to dressing to marinate for about 20 minutes.

Assemble salad with beets, oranges with their juice, onions, and cooled Einka & lentil blend. Stir in herbs, add crumbled feta, adjust salt & pepper to taste. Serve at room temperature. 

*This dish can be a summer or winter dish. In winter, this dish can be served warm. If your making this dish in the summer and its too hot to turn on the oven, boil the beets instead.