I was searching for something exiting for this Thanksgiving dinner and had to look no further than my Finnish background and grandma’s cooking.
There’s a salad they make in Finland usually around the holidays where the main ingredient is beets.
Often the salad consists of potatoes, onions, and pickles but my grandmother used to make hers a bit differently and omit the potatoes. Instead she would add apple to contrast the beet’s earthiness and add a fresh note. (Another ingredient they use in Finland is pickled herring but I could not subject my American friends to that since beet itself was a bit too exotic to their palate.)
There are couple of good reasons why this salad makes a great addition to your holiday dinner: It can be made – and in fact should be made – a day or two ahead and the deep purple color of the salad adds a visual wow-factor to the table. Plus it uses the ingredients readily available and suited to the holiday season.
Recipe follows.
§ 3 beets
§ 2 – 3 medium carrots
§ 1 (small) red onion
§ 1 apple; preferably Granny Smith
§ 1 Kosher dill pickle
§ ½ tsp salt
§ Tbsp sugar
§ 1 Tbsp white wine vinegar
§ 1 cup of crème fraîche for dressing (see note)
Cut beets and carrots into about 0.4″ / 1 cm cubes. Steam until “al dente”. (You may boil them also, but I prefer steaming as more nutrients remain in the vegetables using this method.)
Reduce the rosy-red cooking liquid until you have about 1 tablespoon of deep ruby-red liquid to preserve and use to dye your dressing to delicious pink.
Let vegetables cool down slightly and mix them together with chopped onion and cubed apple and pickle. Add salt, sugar, and vinegar. Cover and refrigerate overnight and stir occasionally to evenly distribute the flavor and the red color which the beets will render to all the rest of the ingredients.
Dressing: Crème fraîche is not readily available in the United States but you can make your own by mixing 50/50 sour cream and whipping cream. Whisk together, cover, and let stand in a warm place for 12 hours plus another 36 in the refrigerator. Mix in the preserved spoonful of cooking liquid for a beautiful pink color. Add a dollop on top of each portion of beet salad you are serving.
Grandma
