We really enjoyed this salad. The rye bread is a great accompaniment to the beets.

Beet and Rye Bread Panzanella

Serving Size: 4

Ingredients:

  • 2 large beets, cleaned
  • 1 red onion
  • 3-4 slices rye bread, crust removed
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 organic orange, zested, peeled and sectioned
  • 2-3 ounces vegan feta
  • fresh herbs: parsley, salad burnet, mint, cleaned

for the dressing:

  • 2 tablespoons organic orange zest, some reserved as garnish
  • orange juice
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons white balsamic or fruit vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon vegetable bouillon powder
  • ¼ teaspoon dry mustard powder
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • zest of orange as garnish

Beet and Rye Bread Panzanella

Directions:

  1. Wash and scrub the beets. We prefer to steam them, therefor, we peel the beets, cut into bite-sized pieces. Place the beets in a steam and steam for 7 m injures or until soft by al dente. When the beets are done, remove from the steamer and allow to cool.
  2. While the beets are cooking:
    1. Pre-heat the oven to 425°F/220°C.
    2. Cut the crusts from the rye bread.
    3. Tear or cut into bite-sized pieces and place in a bowl.
    4. Drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil over the pieces and toss to mix.
    5. Place the bread pieces on a cookie sheet prepared with baking parchment and bake for 8-10 minutes.
    6. Remove from the oven when light and crispy.
  3. Zest the orange and save the zest.
  4. Carefully peel the orange to remove the outer white parts of the peel.
  5. Carefully remove the individual sections of the orange and place in a bowl.
  6. Arrange the beets and orange pieces on salad plates.
  7. Add a generous portion of the rye bread pieces to each salad.
  8. Add some of the fresh herbs to each salad.
  9. Mix the dressing ingredients together and drizzle on each salad.
  10. Add the vegan feta pieces to each salad.
  11. Garnish the salads with additional orange zest and serve.

Notes:

We saw this recipe at bonappetite.com. It only took a few changes to make it vegan. We also used a few different herbs such as salad burnet, as that is what is growing in our garden at this time.