Roast Vegetable Salad w/ Black Sesame Gomasio is a scrumptious salad that is on high rotation at our house. This salad is chock full of flavours and textures that will appeal to everyone… there’s the creaminess of the avocado, the zing and bite from the pickled beetroot, sweetness and softness the from the roasted vegetables, a mild earthy bite from the brussel sprouts, then dressed with a salty sesame seed sprinkle.
As a family we are currently into week 3 of our new lifestyle of going meat free every second day; one day on, one day off. I enjoy the challenge of coming up with delicious meals that will appeal to an almost 10 year old son, a hubby and myself. I’m very fortunate though that hubby regards salads as a dinner, I can happily serve a big plate of leaves and colourful additions knowing that it will sate his evening appetite … but man cannot live on salads alone, and most certainly not a 10 year old boy!
One trick that serves us all well at dinner time – especially since it’s now winter is to make a couple of dishes to go with it, such as a Potato Dauphinoise – this adds a real comfort food element to this salad (or any salad for that matter) with it’s warm, soft, creamy and cheesy potato layers, or a Broccoli and Cauliflower Mac’n’Cheese.
Another trick is to have some emergency foods ready to use at a moments notice such as mini Wild Mushroom Aranchini Balls, meat free dumplings or potstickers. Make a big batch of them when you do actually make them, then freeze. This way you can pull out what you need when you need them. Have them reheating while you make up the salad.
This is an open recipe, if you want more brussel sprouts then go ahead and add more, add more sweet potato if you want to. It can be as filling and loaded as you choose it to be.
Ingredients
Roasted brussel sprouts
6 brussel sprouts (3 per person)
2 tsp oil (rice bran or similar)
2 tsp honey
Other vegetables
1 medium sweet potato
1/2 zucchini
oil
Pickled beetroot
2 beetroots
200ml white vinegar
120g white sugar
2 all spice berries
1 bay leaf
Black sesame gomasio
2 tbs black sesame seeds
1/4 tsp salt
Mix lettuce leaves
half an avocado, skin removed and sliced
3 tbsp marinated goats cheese with the oil
Methods
Beetroot
Place beetroot into a saucepan of cold water and then bring up to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and cook for about 40 minutes or till a skewer goes through without much resistance. Remove and drain the beetroot and leave to cool enough to handle.
Once they are cool enough to handle, top and tail them and then peel the skin off – you will need gloves for this or you will have red stained hands for days. Cut into mid sized cubes and place into a clean jar.
Place the vinegar, sugar, berries and bayleaf into a small saucepan and bring to the boil. Stir till the sugar has dissolved then leave to cool slightly before carefully pouring the liquid over the beetroot in the jar. This will keep for a couple of weeks in the fridge.
Roasted vegetables
If you have a griddle pan then you can do the zucchini and sweet potato on this otherwise do it all in the oven… or finish the vegetables off on the griddle for the charred look and taste.
Pre heat the oven to 200°C
Peel the sweet potato and cut into 1/2 cm thick slices.
Wash the zucchini and cut into 1/2 cm thick slices.
Place these onto a lined oven tray and drizzle or spray lightly with oil. Give a quick toss then place in the oven. Cook for about 20 mins.
Cut the brussel sprouts in half length ways and place on another lined tray and drizzle or spray with oil, toss to coat. Cook for about 15-20 minutes or till beautifully caramalised and tender to the touch. Remove from the oven and then drizzle over honey.
Black sesame gomasio
Dry roast the sesame seeds in a frypan on low to medium heat. Being black seeds it’s hard to see if they are ready but do a test by squashing one between your fingers, if it appears to pop or crack they are ready. This can take from 5 to 15 minutes depending on how high a heat you are using. There’s no hurry so keep it low and keep tossing them around till ready.
Pour the sesame seeds into a mortar and pestle and then add the salt. Grind the seeds till roughly 80% of the seeds have been broken up.
Pour into a container and store in the fridge for up to a couple of months. It will last longer but you will lose the freshness of freshly roasted seeds if left too long.
You can make more or less of this yummy condiment, I use 8 parts sesame seeds with 1 part salt, 8:1 ratio.
Assembly
Now the fun part, sure you could just throw it on a plate but you’ve now got some great elements that you can construct and layer beautifully on your plate.
Start by using some of the oil from the marinated goats cheese to coat the lettuce leaves and place on a tray or individual plates.
Gather the sweet potato and zucchini and toss them through the lettuce.
Scatter the beetroot pieces in and around the lettuce.
Gently place the avocado through the plate.
Lay the honey brussel sprouts throughout the lettuce.
Drop pieces of the marinated goats cheese over the top.
Sprinkle over the black sesame gomasio
Enjoy!
- 6 brussel sprouts (3 per person)
- 2 tsp oil (rice bran or similar)
- 2 tsp honey
- 1 medium sweet potato
- ½ zucchini
- oil
- 2 beetroots
- 200ml white vinegar
- 120g white sugar
- 2 all spice berries
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 tbs black sesame seeds
- ¼ tsp salt
- Mix lettuce leaves
- half an avocado, skin removed and sliced
- 3 tbsp marinated goats cheese with the oil
- Place beetroot into a saucepan of cold water and then bring up to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and cook for about 40 minutes or till a skewer goes through without much resistance. Remove and drain the beetroot and leave to cool enough to handle.
- Once they are cool enough to handle, top and tail them and then peel the skin off – you will need gloves for this or you will have red stained hands for days. Cut into mid sized cubes and place into a clean jar.
- Place the vinegar, sugar, berries and bayleaf into a small saucepan and bring to the boil. Stir till the sugar has dissolved then leave to cool slightly before carefully pouring the liquid over the beetroot in the jar. This will keep for a couple of weeks in the fridge.
- If you have a griddle pan then you can do the zucchini and sweet potato on this otherwise do it all in the oven… or finish the vegetables off on the griddle for the charred look and taste.
- Pre heat the oven to 200°C
- Peel the sweet potato and cut into ½ cm thick slices.
- Wash the zucchini and cut into ½ cm thick slices.
- Place these onto a lined oven tray and drizzle or spray lightly with oil. Give a quick toss then place in the oven. Cook for about 20 mins.
- Cut the brussel sprouts in half length ways and place on another lined tray and drizzle or spray with oil, toss to coat. Cook for about 15-20 minutes or till beautifully caramalised and tender to the touch. Remove from the oven and then drizzle over honey.
- Dry roast the sesame seeds in a frypan on low to medium heat. Being black seeds it’s hard to see if they are ready but do a test by squashing one between your fingers, if it appears to pop or crack they are ready. This can take from 5 to 15 minutes depending on how high a heat you are using. There’s no hurry so keep it low and keep tossing them around till ready.
- Pour the sesame seeds into a mortar and pestle and then add the salt. Grind the seeds till roughly 80% of the seeds have been broken up.
- Pour into a container and store in the fridge for up to a couple of months. It will last longer but you will lose the freshness of freshly roasted seeds if left too long.
- You can make more or less of this yummy condiment, I use 8 parts sesame seeds with 1 part salt, 8:1 ratio.
- Now the fun part, sure you could just throw it on a plate but you’ve now got some great elements that you can construct and layer beautifully on your plate.
- Start by using some of the oil from the marinated goats cheese to coat the lettuce leaves and place on a tray or individual plates.
- Gather the sweet potato and zucchini and toss them through the lettuce.
- Scatter the beetroot pieces in and around the lettuce.
- Gently place the avocado through the plate.
- Lay the honey brussel sprouts throughout the lettuce.
- Drop pieces of the marinated goats cheese over the top.
- Sprinkle over the black sesame gomasio