Roasted Beets with Poached Egg Salad

17. February 2009 Breakfast + Brunch 0

I miss my routine of going to work, heading to the gym after and then meeting up with friends for food and drinks before the night ends, but I can’t say it has been all bad while I’ve been unemployed. Sure my savings account is dwindling, but I’ve also started to cherish the days when I can catch up with reruns of Bizaare Food, The Real Housewives of Orange County and The Bachelor. The best days have been those quiet afternoons where I can make myself a meal and then head over to a museum and enjoy the space without the crowd. This is one of the meals I made myself last week.

You can roast the beets a day or two ahead. After peeling, transfer the whole beets in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and store in the fridge until ready to use. Poaching the egg is the most challenging but really easy. Once you try it, I swear you’ll add a poached egg to every salad you make.

Ingredients:
2 red beets and 2 golden beets, tops cut off
1 endive, sliced
2 ribs celery, chopped
4 leaves of green lettuce, chiffonade
1 egg
1/4 cup of vinegar
oil, salt, pepper

1. Wrap beets in aluminum foil and roast in the oven for about 1 hour or until you can prick each beet with a fork without too much effort. Remove from the oven and set aside. When cool enough to handle, peel using a paring knife or a peeler and then chop in small wedges.
2. Poach the egg when ready to assemble the salad. Fill a deep skillet with 2 cups of water. Add vinegar and a pinch of salt and place over high heat. Crack egg into small shallow bowl. When water boils, reduce heat to a rolling boil and gently pour in the egg. Cook until whites are firmly set. Remove egg with a slotted spoon and set aside on a plate. Keep it on the slotted spoon until ready to serve.
3. Assemble the salad. In a large bowl, combine all vegetables with roasted beets. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle with olive oil and toss until well-combined. Serve salad on a plate with poached egg by carefully placing it on top.