This is one of the most simple beet salads. Of course the beets have to be cooked first.

You can boil it, but the best way is baking. Just wash it, wrap in a foil like you do with potato and put it in your oven (I usually place a couple there when I bake or cook something else). You can check the readiness by poking through the foil with a toothpick, should feel soft. When it’s baked all the juices remain inside the root and the sweetness is concentrated. If you don’t use them right away you can keep them in a fridge for several days. And the peeling is very easy.

Ingredients:

• Peeled baked beets – 2 medium
• Roasted walnuts – 2-3 tbsp
• Garlic – 2-3cloves

Directions:

• Peel the beets and grind using hand grinder (very easy),
• Chop walnuts or even break them with your hands
• Finely chop or grind garlic
• Season with salt and pepper
• Dress with several drops of olive oil and or 1 tsp of mayonnaise

Decorate or garnish with some pickles or capers

Ingredients:

• roasted chicken – 2 medium chicken breasts, (can be either white or dark meat)
• celery – 2 stalks

The dressing can be just plain mayonnaise, but it is somewhat heavy for me, so I take olive oil, add French mustard, mix it together to emulsify and add a little bit of mayonnaise just for the color.

Dressing:

• olive oil – 1/4 cup
• French mustard – 1tbsp
• mayonnaise – 1 tsp

Sprinkle with red pepper flakes.

The celery adds crunch and tastes like pickle in this salad. And as always with chicken salads – you can serve it on a plate, make a sandwich with it, put it in a container and take to work etc. The easiest possible way to utilize your roasted chicken leftovers!

Cannot be any easier – thinly sliced cucumbers, thinly sliced garlic, finely chopped dill.

Add salt, pepper. Dress with fresh lemon juice. That’s all. Great refreshing side for any fish, chicken or meat dish.