Add this on the side of any Haitian meal, its your manje just went from great to incredible.
In this perfect winter salad, beets provide grounding, earthy nourishment in the stressful holiday months, and marvelous flavor and color, as well. Beets are rich in zinc, an essential nutrient. This recipe couldn’t be easier or quicker to make, and it’s a great way to use up leftover beets.
This is a better version of a ubiquitous salad found in takeout shops all over France. Salade Russe, as it is called, is a mayonnaise-dressed mixture of potatoes, diced carrots, peas and other vegetables, but usually not beets. Yogurt vinaigrette stands in for mayonnaise here.
3/4 pound potatoes
2 large beets, roasted
1 celery rib, diced
1/2 small red onion, minced, soaked in water for 5 minutes, then drained, rinsed and drained on paper towels (optional)
2 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and finely chopped
2 tablespoons minced chives
2 tablespoons Champagne vinegar or sherry vinegar
Salt to taste
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup plain low-fat yogurt
Freshly ground pepper
1. Cut the potatoes into halves or quarters and steam over 1 inch of boiling water until tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from the heat. When they are cool enough to handle, cut in small dice.
2. Peel the beets and cut in small dice. In a large bowl, combine with the potatoes, celery, onion, hard-boiled eggs and chives.
3. In a small bowl or measuring cup, whisk together the vinegar, mustard and salt. Whisk in the olive oil and the yogurt. Toss with the vegetables. Add freshly ground pepper, taste and adjust salt. Serve right away or refrigerate.
Yield: 4 to 6 servings.
Advance preparation: This will keep for two or three days in the refrigerator. I like it even better the day after it’s made, as both the beets and the potatoes absorb the nice tart dressing. The beet color will intensify.
Nutritional information per serving (4 servings): 254 calories; 16 grams fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 11 grams monounsaturated fat; 93 milligrams cholesterol; 21 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams dietary fiber; 148 milligrams sodium (does not include salt to taste); 7 grams protein
Nutritional information per serving (6 servings): 170 calories; 11 grams fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 7 grams monounsaturated fat; 62 milligrams cholesterol; 14 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 99 milligrams sodium (does not include salt to taste); 4 grams protein
