Author Notes
This was a sandwich we came up with for a Halloween special. The beetroot (beet) was a given because of its deep bloody red colour. We pickled it to give it extra zing! Goat’s cheese and chives are a classic combination that work really well with the earthiness of the beetroot.
Recipe excerpted with permission from Grill My Cheese by Nisha Patel and Nishma Chauhan, published by Quadrille October 2017. —Food52
Ingredients
- For the sandwich
-
2
slices of sourdough bread, buttered on one side
-
5 1/4 ounces
(150g) soft goat’s cheese
-
1 teaspoon
finely chopped chives
-
pickled beet (below)
- For the pickled beets
-
3-4
medium, raw beets
-
2 tablespoons
olive oil
-
1 cup
(200g) caster (superfine) sugar
-
1 1/4 cups
(300ml) white wine vinegar
-
2 tablespoons
balsamic vinegar
-
1 cup
minus 3 tbsp (200ml) water
-
2
bay leaves
Directions
-
Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/Gas 4. Trim any leaves or stalks off the beetroot (beet), clean and coat in 1 tablespoon of the oil. Wrap in foil and roast in the oven for 1–1 1/2 hours, until the point of a knife can be easily inserted. Remove and leave to cool in the foil, then unwrap and peel off the skin; use gloves or paper towels to stop your hands being stained. Cut into thick slices and place in a sterilized jar.
-
For the pickling liquor, put the sugar, both vinegars, water and bay leaves in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Turn down to a simmer and gently stir so that all the sugar is dissolved. Carefully pour enough of the hot liquid into the jar to fully cover the beetroot (depending on the size of the jar, you may not need it all). Leave to cool, uncovered, then spoon the remaining tablespoon of oil into the jar and seal. Leave for at least 24 hours, and store in the refrigerator for up to a month.
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To assemble the sandwich, place the bread slices buttered side down. Spread the goat’s cheese onto one slice of the bread. Place some of the pickled beetroot slices on top, then sprinkle on the chives. Close the sandwich and cook using your preferred method (panini press, frying pan, toasted sandwich machine, oven).
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