A Beet & Grapefruit Salad is delicious anytime, but especially nice at this time of year when citrus fruits are in season. In this salad, I combined sweet roasted beets and tart grapefruit. Toasty walnuts and blue cheese are perfect complements.
Beet & Grapefruit SaladBeet & Grapefruit salad is perfect for packed lunches, and a lovely starter for a wintery roast meal. Winter just won’t let go of us here. We live in the one part of Canada, where winters are usually fairly mild and short. But not this winter. The snow just keeps coming, with no end in sight. I think most everybody has had enough winter by now.
Sunny Citrus is Perfect With Sweet Roasted Beets
That’s why I love citrus fruits. They have a sunny flavour that just brightens up a dreary winter day. They even look like sunshine. And they come from sunny places, so maybe they bring a little of that warm sun with them, at least the essence of it. We especially love the sweet tartness of grapefruit, my favourite being the pinks. We’ve also been getting our fill of navel, Valencia, and blood oranges. And lemons and limes are always in the fridge, year round. When we can’t get seasonal fruit locally, we can at least get in season fruit from somewhere, right?
Beet Peeling 101
The beets, on the other hand, are local and organically grown right here. Beets, like other root vegetables, keep well, with is a blessing at this time of year. Beets are messy, though. Do you hate staining your hands, counter tops and cutting board? Try this tip from Real Simple: How to Peel Beets.
I had some blood oranges, so I used them in this beet salad along with the grapefruit. But regular oranges would be even better, for a more colourful salad. Use those if you have them, but the salad is so good either way.
I know that not everyone is a fan of blue cheese, so feel free to swap it for feta if you aren’t. It will be just as delicious. Or you can leave out the cheese altogether to make this a vegan salad.
If you’re still hungry for beet salads, you may want to check out Wild Rice and Roasted Beet Salad.
Beet & Grapefruit SaladMake this Beet & Grapefruit Salad
- 4 medium beets
- 2 shallots sliced
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 large red grapefruit peeled, sectioned, with pith removed
- 2 oranges peeled, sectioned, with pith removed
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 tsp course salt
- 1/2 cup walnuts toasted
- 1/4 cup blue cheese crumbled
- 2 green onions sliced
- Preheat oven to 400°
wrap beets in foil, and place on a baking tray, along with sliced shallots
- Roast until beets are fork tender, about 30 minutes. Remove from oven, open foil, and allow to cool
When beets have cooled, rub the skins off with paper towel. Cut them into cubes.
- In a bowl, combine beets, grapefruit and orange segments
- Whisk together olive oil, cider vinegar, and salt. Pour over salad and toss to coat
- Add walnuts and blue cheese and gently combine
- Refrigerate for about an hour
- top with green onions for serving
Most of the time allotted for this recipe is the roasting time for the beets. You can roast the beets anytime and keep in the fridge until you want to make this salad; or, use leftover beets.
If you or someone you are serving has a nut allergy, you can leave out the nuts. The slightly bitter crunch is what they bring, so if you can, substitue arugula, or radicchio.
Beet Salad with Grapefruit & Blue Cheese
I’ve had enough of this Canadian winter! 🙂 Well, at least, this colorful, cheerful salad is able to brighten my day. I love citrus fruits and although I never paired them with beets, I’m sure they are the right complement. Great salad!
Nicoletta, I know, right? This morning I did a happy dance to wake up and it was not snowing. Spring will be here soon, we just have to hope. 🙂 I’m glad I was able to brighten your day. Cheers.
This looks fantastic! I would sub in goat cheese as I just cant do blue cheese lol.
Thanks Heather! I know, blue cheese is not up everyone’s alley. But feta or goat cheese is also perfect in this salad.
This looks absolutely gorgeous… the colors, the presentation!! I am so inspired for my next beet salad! With love!
Kelly, Thank you so very much! I’m honored to inspire you. Cheers.
I need this colourful bowl in my life! Love the flavour combinations! I never thought of beets with grapefruit but – of course! I look forward to trying it. The nuts and blue cheese must make it rich and satisfying too.
Thanks Laura! It is a very tasty combo. I hope you enjoy it!
I don’t understand. Why the olive oil and vinegar at beginning and then again at the end. No mention of oranges in title. Where do shallots come in?
4 medium beets
2 shallots sliced
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 large red grapefruit peeled, sectioned, with pith removed
2 oranges peeled, sectioned, with pith removed
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1/2 tsp course salt
1/2 cup walnuts toasted
1/4 cup blue cheese crumbled
2 green onions sliced
Hi Anita, The olive oil and vinegar do happen twice: when roasting the beets, then in the dressing. I have modified the post to make that more clear. And thank you so much for letting me know about missing the shallots in the instructions! As a blogger, and a human, I do sometimes make mistakes, and I appreciate you so much for keeping me on my toes. I have fixed that. (Shallots should go in the oven with the roasted beets) As for the oranges, it’s not possible to include every ingredient in the title of a recipe. This one is pretty simple and would work without the oranges. Thank you so much for your feedback, and I hope that you will visit often.
It was fantastic. My chef husband loved it and didn’t want to change anything. Thanks for sharing on this snowy day in Chicago.
Anita, this is so great to hear! So glad you and your hubby enjoyed it, and, I hope spring comes along soon for you, in beautiful Chicago!
When and how is the balsamic vinegar incorporated?
Looks like a great recipe, can’t wait to make it!
Hi Suzanne, Thanks for this question, because I had recently updated the recipe for roasting the beets in their skins. It used to be for roasting them, peeled with the balsamic vinegar and olive oil, and I neglected to update that piece. I like the cider vinegar better, because it keeps the pretty colour of the salad, while balsamic muddies it a bit. My apologies for the confusion, it is now fixed! Enjoy the recipe, it’s delicious!