Fresh, vibrant winter roasted beet salad with citrus, pistachios, hemp seeds, and avocado. This vitamin-packed salad will leave you feeling energized and glowy.
This roasted beet salad is one of those seasonally-appropriate adulting salads that will fire you up (no joke, I’m convinced beets are an aphrodisiac), and make you feel squeaky clean and energized.
The combination of roasted beets, citrus fruit, and avocado is a beautiful 3-way produce marriage. After years and years of working with beets, I’ve found you can never go wrong with this combination, as so many flavor and texture bases are covered.
For the citrus portion of this winter salad, I use a clementine, a blood orange, and make a dressing with fresh lemon juice. The triple citrus trifecta makes for a super vibrant and perky salad that changes up your lunch and dinner game.
Ideal for the veggie lover, this nutritious salad recipe is packed with quality Vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and fiber! It is the perfect side dish, or a great light meal.
Let’s discuss the simple ingredients for this easy winter salad recipe.
Ingredients for Winter Beet Salad:
Red Beets: The star of the show! Roasted beets are the reason we’re making this whole salad! Pick your favorite kind of beets, as golden beets and Chioggia beets work too. I recommend fresh beets over canned beets for the best tasting results.
Clementine and Blood Orange: Our winter citrus that bring bursts of juicy tangy flavor and sweetness. Replace them with cara cara oranges, mandarins, or any citrus fruit you love.
Baby Spinach & Baby Arugula: My choice of greens. Feel free to pick your favorite kind of leafy greens, such as romaine lettuce, spring greens, or kale.
Pistachios: A nutty crunch makes the whole thing so delicious.
Hemp Hearts: For omega-3 fatty acids.
Avocado: Brings creaminess, richness, and healthy fats to the salad to make it taste so dreamy.
For the Citrus Dressing: Avocado oil, fresh lemon juice, pure maple syrup, dried oregano, and sea salt. This simple combination of ingredients yields a zesty, tangy salad dressing that is so simple to whip up.
Recipe Customizations:
- Toss in some tart apples, dried cranberries, and feta cheese for a more substantial salad.
- Mix up the nut selection. Pecans, crunchy walnuts, and pumpkin seeds work great in place of pistachios and hemp seeds!
- Turn it into an complete meal by adding grilled chicken or rotisserie chicken.
- Switch out the dressing for my Creamy Balsamic Vinaigrette.
How to Make Citrus Winter Roasted Beet Salad:
The first step is to roast the beets in the oven. They require a little time, so getting this process out of the way in advance so that they can cool is a great idea. I first chop the beets into slices or cubes, then roast them in an aluminum foil packet at 400 degrees F for 40 to 50 minutes, until tender.
Once your beets are roasted and cooled, add all of the salad ingredients to a large mixing bowl.
Stir together the salad dressing ingredients in a small bowl, then pour it into the salad bowl. Toss well until everything is coated in dressing.
If you’d like, season the salad with sea salt and black pepper, or add a little olive oil, drizzle of balsamic vinegar, some toasted pecans, tangy goat cheese or feta, or dried fruit for some pizzaz.
Serve this fresh salad alongside your main dish in a large serving bowl or on a large platter, and enjoy!
Recipe Tips:
- Roast the beets up to 5 days ahead of time for a little meal prep action.
- If you’re tight on time, you don’t need to peel the outer membrane off of the clementine and blood orange pieces – you can leave the membrane intact. There’s a textural difference without the membrane, but my recipes are always a choose-your-own-adventure situation, so don’t go feeling pressured.
If you’re looking for some more next level salads, also try out these gems!
More Salad Recipes:
- Greek Chickpea Tuna Salad
- Healthy Summer Salad Recipes
- Pea Salad with Bacon
- Arugula Salad with Pickled Onions
- Roasted Beet and Berry Salad with Raspberry Vinaigrette
Enjoy this amazing winter salad the next time you’re craving an infusion of veggies!
Citrus Roasted Beet Salad
Ingredients
- 2.5 ounces baby spinach
- 2.5 ounces baby arugula
- 1 medium beet roasted and cooled
- 1 clementine peeled and sectioned
- 1 blood orange peeled and sectioned
- 1 avocado peeled, cored and chopped
- 1/2 cup shelled pistachios
- 1 tablespoon hulled hemp hearts
Optional Additions:
- 1/2 cup feta cheese or goat cheese
- 1/3 cup dried cranberries
- 1/3 cup chopped pecans
For the Dressing:
- 1/3 cup avocado oil or olive oil
- 3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 Tbsp pure maple syrup
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 pinch sea salt
Instructions
- Add salad dressing ingredients to a small blender and blend until completely combined (note: if you don’t have a small blender, whisk ingredients vigorously in a bowl).
- Add salad ingredients to a large serving bowl and drizzle desired amount of dressing over the salad. Toss well until everything is coated in dressing. Serve and enjoy.
I have prepared this recipe twice – once with just red beets and once with both red and golden. Both were excellent. To save time, I used packaged spring green mix lettuces. I have used the citrus reduction dressing on another roasted root vegetable dish and it was great.
That sounds so great! Thanks for letting me know, Jun! xo
This salad looks like just what I need to brighten things up and lift me out of the winter doldrums. So beautiful!
This salad looks amazing, colorful and packed with flavor. Can’t wait to try it.
I’ve never done Whole30 and I’m pretty sure it would be really hard for me. I love my carbs like rice too! That said, I do love salads and soup…there’s always that. 🙂 The citrus-beet-avocado combo is one of my favorites and I can definitely use the clean and glowy feel!