Goat's cheese with roast beetroot, walnuts and radicchio
Don't get me wrong; I don't mind the occasional cheese on toast in front of the telly, but for a long time that was all Australia produced - cheese-on-toast cheese. The labours of the past 20 years or so of artisan-farmhouse cheese-making in Australia have produced extraordinary cheeses. Among them are gems made from goat's milk.
Ingredients
16 baby beetroot
salt and pepper
extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup of shelled walnuts
red wine vinegar
one or two heads of radicchio
vinaigrette
4-6 tbsp of fresh goat's cheese
6-8 chive spears
a couple of sprigs of flat-leaf parsley
Method
For 4 people wash 16 baby beetroot, each about the size of a golf ball. Place them in a roasting pan, toss in a little extra virgin olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast in a preheated 180C oven for 30 to 35 minutes, until a knife pierces each easily. Put aside and cool.
Spread half a cup of shelled walnuts on a roasting tray or pan and place in the same oven as the beets. Roast them for about 10 minutes. Put aside and cool.
Cut the beets in half (leave the skin on if you like - it's delicious) and dress with a little olive oil and a tablespoon of red wine vinegar.
Thinly slice one or two heads of radicchio and dress well with vinaigrette. Place the radicchio on a serving plate as a bed and scatter the roasted beets and walnuts on top. Scatter 4-6 tbsp of fresh goat's cheese. Finely chop 6-8 chive spears and a couple of sprigs of flat-leaf parsley and sprinkle over the lot.
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