Barbabietole / Beetroot salad

Without wasting a single leaf. Ideal for a side dish or for a light meal. Accompany it with croutons. Beetroot is known, it is a real panacea for our health, especially if we suffer from anemia. In fact, it contains a good amount of iron and other important nutrients such as magnesium, phosphorus, calcium and potassium. And it is also a powerful antioxidant. In particular, today I want to offer you a light vegan recipe to prepare also with beet leaves: a non-wasteful, healthy and tasty preparation. This salad is perfect not only as a side dish to fish or meat dishes but also as a main course, perhaps accompanied with a nice slice of toasted sourdough bread.

Ingredients

3 medium beets

2 cloves of garlic

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano (alternatively dried oregano is also fine)

Salt and pepper

Preparation

Cut the leaves and stems of the beets, wash and shake them so as to drain them, taking care not to cut the skin of the beet otherwise the red juice will end up in the water. Wash and rub the beets keeping the roots intact and then boil them in salted water for about 30-45 minutes until tender. Remove the skin, trim the base and the upper part and cut into large wedges. Place the stems and leaves in another pot with salted water and boil for about a minute until tender. Drain and chop coarsely. Crush the garlic cloves adding a pinch of salt, transfer everything to a large bowl and mix well with vinegar, olive oil and oregano. Mix the emulsion obtained with the beets and leaves and then season to taste.

A word of advice

Accompany the salad with a delicious mashed chickpeas and toasted sourdough bread.