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Can't Beet These Salad Sensations

Pickled Beet "Cobb" Salad, Beet & Bean Salad With Warm Basil-Bacon Dressing, Tomato & Beet Stacks With Herb Vinaigrette and Country Picnic Beet & Three Bean Salad

Tomato & Beef Stacks With Herb Vinaigrette

(Family Features) - It's salad season! Time to enjoy salads as sides — and as the meal!

These easy beet salads, full of flavor and color, are just right for occasions from family dinners to picnics, potlucks or even a special meal for company.

Convenient glass-packed pickled beets not only enhance each salad with a burst of their intense ruby-red color, but they add a delicious sweet-tangy, homemade taste.

Versatile pickled beets pair readily with other ingredients to create a variety of sensational salads, from an updated version of the classic Cobb, to a new spin on bean salad! Plus, teaming beets with bagged salad greens, precooked bacon, canned beans and prepared dressings makes preparation super simple.

Use glass-packed beets — plain or pickled — to dress up favorite salads. They add flavor and good-for-you nutrients to a basic mixed greens salad, chef's salad, even a bean salad.
Keep glass-packed beets chilled in the refrigerator for a spur-of-the-moment salad. Looks like you fussed, but you really didn't! Try these:

Drain and coarsely chop pickled beets. Toss with minced green onions, chopped tomatoes and minced yellow bell pepper. Spoon over a wedge of iceberg lettuce, sprinkle with crumbled blue cheese and drizzle with a favorite vinaigrette.
Top mixed greens with orange segments, sliced beets, chopped chives and toasted pecans. Drizzle with oil and vinegar dressing.
Arrange plain or pickled beet slices on a plate. Top with prepared chicken salad and garnish with chopped parsley.
Or top beets with bean salad, barley salad or wild rice salad.

That's not all. Adding these ruby-red vegetables to your salad is a delicious way to help get your "five-a-day" servings of vegetables and fruits. Beets also provide an extra nutrition boost in the form of antioxidants. These vitamins, minerals and other substances found in colorful vegetables and fruits help keep body cells healthy and may help protect us from certain health problems such as cancer, heart disease and memory loss.

For additional beet recipes, send a self-addressed, stamped #10 envelope to Seneca Foods Fulfillment, 3732 South Main St., Marion, NY 14505 and visit www.senecafoods.com.

Pickled Beet "Cobb" Salad

4 cups packed shredded romaine lettuce
1 cup diced cooked chicken or turkey breast
3/4 cup sliced pickled beets, drained
1/3 cup cooked, crumbled bacon or real bacon bits
1/3 cup shredded Cheddar cheese or crumbled blue cheese
1 hard-cooked egg, chopped
1/3 cup vinaigrette or Caesar salad dressing
Garlic croutons (optional)

Divide lettuce evenly among 4 individual serving plates or bowls. Arrange diced chicken in row down center of lettuce. Arrange beets in rows on each side of chicken. Top with bacon, cheese and egg.
Cover and refrigerate up to 4 hours, if desired. To serve, drizzle with dressing and top with croutons, if desired.

Makes 4 servings

Beet & Bean Salad With Warm Basil-Bacon Dressing

1 (16-ounce) jar sliced pickled beets, drained, reserving 1/2 cup liquid
1 (19-ounce) can cannellini (white Italian kidney beans) or other canned white beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/4 cup chopped red onion
1 (10-ounce) bag Italian blend salad mix

Dressing
1/2 cup reserved beet liquid
1/2 cup prepared basil pesto
1/4 cup cooked, crumbled bacon or real bacon bits
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

In large bowl, combine beets, beans, celery and onion; mix gently but thoroughly. Add salad greens; toss to combine.
To make Basil-Bacon Dressing, in small saucepan combine reserved beet liquid, pesto, bacon and pepper. Heat through, stirring occasionally, without boiling.* Pour over salad mixture; mix gently but thoroughly. Serve immediately.

Makes 6 servings

*Microwave directions: In medium microwave-safe bowl, combine reserved beet liquid, pesto, bacon and pepper. Heat on HIGH 1 minute, stirring once.

Tomato & Beet Stacks With Herb Vinaigrette

1 (16-ounce) jar sliced pickled beets
3 cups mixed salad greens
1/3 pound small green beans, steamed
2 medium yellow tomatoes, sliced 1/4 inch thick
Crumbled blue cheese or goat cheese (optional)

Vinaigrette
1/3 cup olive or vegetable oil
1/3 cup white wine vinegar or rice vinegar
1 tablespoon finely chopped mixed fresh herbs (such as parsley, basil, oregano, chives and/or thyme)
1 garlic clove, minced
Salt and pepper

Remove half of beets from jar; drain well. (Reserve remaining beets for Bonus Beet & Walnut Salad below.)
Divide salad greens and green beans evenly among 4 individual salad plates. Layer tomato and beet slices in a tumbled "stack" on each plate.
To make Herb Vinaigrette, whisk together oil, vinegar, herbs and garlic. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Drizzle salads with about half of vinaigrette (reserve remaining for Bonus Beet & Walnut Salad below). Sprinkle salads with cheese if desired, and serve.

Makes 4 servings

Bonus Beet & Walnut Salad: Drain reserved sliced pickled beets. Arrange beets over mixed greens. Sprinkle with coarsely chopped toasted walnuts and crumbled blue cheese or goat cheese. Drizzle with remaining Herb Vinaigrette.

Country Picnic Beet & Three Bean Salad

1 (15-ounce) can three bean salad, drained
1 medium cucumber, sliced 1/4 inch thick
1 small yellow, red or green bell pepper, cut into thin strips
2 green onions, thinly sliced
1 (16-ounce) jar sliced pickled beets, drained

In large bowl, combine bean salad, cucumber, bell pepper and onions. Cover and refrigerate until chilled, or as long as overnight.
Just before serving, stir in beets.

Makes 6 to 8 servings

SOURCE: Seneca Foods Corporation for Aunt Nellie's, Lohmann, Libby's and Stokely's Gold glass-packed vegetables