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NOTE: To keep apple from browning, sprinkle julienned strips with vitamin C powder or lemon juice.

Baby Beet Salad with Pistachio Vinaigrette and Chickpea Fritters

Serves 4

Baby Beets

Kosher salt

6 baby red beets

6 baby yellow beets

6 baby Chioggia beets

To make the Baby Beets: Line a small baking dish with salt. Peel beets and trim the tops and bottoms. (Save beet skins and scraps for the Borscht Coulis.) Wrap beets by color into a piece of foil and place foil packages into baking dish. Roast at 325 degrees F for about 40 minutes, or until tender. Remove from oven and peel the skins from the beets. Reserve the beets until ready to use.

Pistachio Vinaigrette

4 tablespoons fennel purée (cook fennel in water and then purée)

1 tablespoon pistachio paste

2 tablespoons grapeseed oil

1 tablespoon walnut oil

1 tablespoon sherry vinegar

Salt and pepper to taste

To make the Pistachio Vinaigrette: Whisk all ingredients together in a large mixing bowl until well combined. Check seasoning and adjust. Blend with an immersion blender to emulsify.

Beet Chips

1 large unpeeled red beet

1 large unpeeled yellow beet

Simple syrup (3 parts hot water to 1 part sugar, dissolved and cooled)

To make the Beet Chips: Slice each color of beet into paper-thin circles. Dip beet slices in simple syrup and lay out on a Silpat-lined baking sheet. Bake at 225 degrees F for 1 hour, or until dry and crispy. Store in an airtight container lined with paper towels.

Borscht Coulis

1 cup beet scraps (add diced beets if needed to fill cup)

1 tablespoon olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

1 cup water

1 sachet made of fennel seeds, cumin, and peppercorns

1 cup red beet juice

To make the Borscht Coulis: In a medium saucepan, sweat beet scraps in olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Add the water and sachet, and cook, covered, over low heat until tender. When cooked, remove sachet from pan and place beets in a blender. Blend on low speed until smooth and then pass through a strainer. When cooled, whisk in beet juice until consistency is still thick but smooth enough to spread. Adjust seasonings and set aside.

Pickled Onions

1 large red onion, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons sugar

8 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

1 sachet made of 1 teaspoon mustard seed, 1 teaspoon fennel seed, 1 dried chile, 2 teaspoons black pepper, and 2 teaspoons coriander

To make the Pickled Onions: Blanch onion in salted water for 2 minutes; drain well and place into a medium-size bowl. In a saucepan, boil remaining ingredients, pour boiled mixture onto onion, and allow to cool at room temperature.

Chickpea Fritters

8 ounces chickpea flour

1 quart water

Salt and pepper to taste

2 tablespoons olive oil

Cornstarch/cold water slurry (thin paste, 1 to 2 ratio)

Panko breadcrumbs

To make the Chickpea Fritters: Whisk the chickpea flour and water together until smooth; season with salt and pepper. Pour into a saucepan and slowly bring the heat up, stirring constantly, until the mixture comes together and is cooked, about 20 minutes; adjust seasonings. Add the oil and whisk with a few strokes until just combined. Pour mixture onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and allow to cool overnight in the refrigerator. The next day, cut into squares, dip into the cornstarch paste and then into panko breadcrumbs to coat. Refrigerate until ready to fry. Fry in hot oil (350 degrees F) for 1-1/2 to 2 minutes, or until brown.

Garnish

Pistachio shavings for dusting (shaved on a microplane)

Bibb lettuce leaves, rinsed and patted dry

Cumin seeds

How to Plate: On a large plate, create a scant pool of Pistachio Vinaigrette on a third of the plate. Arrange Baby Beets, alternating colors onto pool. Intersperse the red and yellow Beet Chips with the Baby Beets. Garnish with pistachio shavings. Use a piece of Bibb lettuce leaf to create a “cup” next to the beets. Place Pickled Onions on top and a couple of Chickpea Fritters on the side. Spread