Wintery beetroot salad with lentils

This crunchy salad makes use of many wintry, regional vegetables. The lentils make it filling, the apple makes it crunchy and the spices make it exciting! 

In Finland this type of beetroot salad is called rosolli and it is a traditional dish at the Christmas table. Similar recipes with beetroot, potato, apple and pickled gherkins – and often herring –  exist in the other Nordic countries, too, as well as in the Netherlands, Germany, Poland and Russia.

I've tweaked the recipe by roasting the fresh beetroots, leaving the carrots raw and by adding lentils and spices. It now feels more modern – and more nutritious.

Beetroot salad with lentils

400g beetroots
2-3 boiled potatoes (skip if you like, it's an ideal use of leftovers!)
1 medium sized carrot
1 small apple
1 small red onion
2-3 mid-sized pickled gherkins
125g dried green or brown lentils, cooked = 1 tin (400g) lentils
1 tsp ground coriander
2 tsp ground cumin
Salt and ground black pepper to taste
1,5 tbsp lemon juice (can be replaced by 1/2 tbsp white balsamic vinegar)
2 tbsp olive oil
Optional:
Add a few table spoons of sunflower seeks and/or pumpkin seeds.
Mix in lambs lettuce or other leafy greens if you like.

Roast the cubed beetroots in the oven at 200°C for about 30 minutes, or until they have softened a little. I like to leave a bit of bite!

Drain the lentils properly and pour them into a big salad bowl. Add coriander and cumin.

Peel and cube the raw carrots very finely, while apple, onion and gherkins slightly rougher.

Once the beetroots have cooled to room temperature, you can toss everything in with the lentils. Drizzle with lemon juice and olive oil, and mix evenly. Taste, add spices or more gherkins if you want more flavour.

Let sit for at least 30 minutes before you serve.