Roasted Beet Salad

I love beets, but have always been hesitant to cook with them since they can be so messy. I have a white kitchen and the thought of my cabinets and countertops being stained by beet juice is a little off-putting. Yes, I did say cabinets - it's not uncommon to find sauces and such splattered or dripped down the cabinets. I like to blame that on my boyfriend, but the truth is, I do most of the cooking around here so statistics would point to me. I digress....Late last week, I bit the bullet and bought some beets. I got the orange variety, not so much because I thought they'd be less messy, but because that's the only kind my grocer had. I hemmed and hawed for a few days before deciding what, exactly, to do with the beets. Then I was reminded of a delicious salad I had over the Christmas holiday at Wild Fire, a Lettuce Entertain You restaurant, where I had a delicious salad of mixed greens, beets, and goat cheese. So I decided to make something similar to pack in my lunches this week and here it is! (Don't forget to enter the giveaway for a super cute lunch tote from Tricia and Thirty-One Gifts)

Roasted Beet Salad
1 bunch of beets, 1 lb or less
Mixed baby greens
Crumbled goat cheese
Blanched slivered almonds
1 Tbsp Sherry vinegar
3/4 tsp Balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 C light olive oil
Freshly ground salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 425°. Cut greens off of beets (beet greens sauteed with garlic and a little olive oil are delish, so retain the greens if you'd like). Scrub the beets and place them in a baking dish with a small amount of water or white wine (about 1/4 inch). Cover with a lid or foil and roast in oven for about 35 minutes or until the beets are fork tender. Let the beets cool in the baking dish. Once the beets are cool enough to handle, cut off the ends and the skin should slip off. Slice the beets.

Whisk the vinegars, oil, mustard, garlic, and salt and pepper together in a small bowl or jar.

Toss salad greens, beets, goat cheese, and almonds together with small amount of dressing.