roasted beets with their greens, grapefruit, and a balsamic anchovy vinaigrette, a whole-vegetable salad that wastes nothing

Most people trim the beet greens off and let them go, tossing out real food along with the peels and stems. This salad keeps them: root and leaf both go on the plate, so nothing you paid for gets wasted. The only real effort involved is patience: the beets need 45 to 60 minutes in the oven before anything else happens. Set them roasting and go do something else. Segmenting the grapefruit while they cook is the only part that asks for any real attention.

Folate is genuinely hard to come by once most grains are off a plate like this one, and beets happen to be a solid source of it, tied to how your body repairs and renews its own cells. The deep color comes from betalains, the same pigment family that gives beets their name, more a marker of how nutrient-dense this root is than a claim on its own.

Rub or peel the papery skins off once the beets are cool enough to handle, and let your hands go pink and stained for a while, that is just what working with real beets looks like. Toss everything together gently so the grapefruit segments stay whole, and let this much color on a plate be reason enough to sit down and actually look at your food before you eat it.

Ingredients

• 3 to 4 medium beets, greens attached
• Salt
• 1 large grapefruit, peeled and cut into segments
• 1 to 2 tablespoons red onion, thinly sliced or chopped
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon anchovy paste (anchovies, oil, and salt only, a clean-label paste)

Method

Heat the oven to 400 F. Cut the greens from the beets and set them aside. Scrub the beets, wrap them in foil, and roast on a baking sheet until a knife slides in easily, about 45 to 60 minutes depending on size. Let them cool until you can handle them, then rub or peel off the skins and slice into wedges or rounds.

While the beets roast, bring a small pot of salted water to a boil. Wash the beet greens well, trim any tough stems, and blanch the leaves for 1 to 2 minutes until just wilted and bright. Drain, press out the extra water, and chop.

Whisk the balsamic vinegar, olive oil, and anchovy paste together until smooth. Season with a little salt to taste.

Combine the sliced beets, chopped greens, grapefruit segments, and red onion in a bowl. Pour the dressing over and toss gently so the grapefruit stays intact. Serve at room temperature or chilled.

*Adapted from gutsybynature.com*