colourful notes

Beetroot, orange, red onion and olive salad

I love colour. I need some more colour in my life. Most importantly, I need colour on my plate. This is a very unlikely pairing. Beetroot? Orange? Onion? Olive? Mint? Individually. Delightful. Together? You might say 'not in a thousand years' as Somerset Maugham famously quoted in 'The Alien Corn.' However, these sweet and zingy ingredients bode very well together indeed and they look ever so pretty don't they?

'Sweetest taboo' by Sade happened to be humming in the background. I'd forgotten this treasure. These musical notes seem to be a perfect match of depth, colour and simplicity to this salad.

The recipe was found in Financial Times to serve 6. I love the specific mint and olive count. Don't get your knickers in a twist about that though! Serve alone with some crusty bread or as a side.

• 5 medium raw beetroot (which you steam to cook - but if you haven't got time, you can buy pre-cooked beetroot)
• Good quality red wine vinegar
• 6 oranges
• 2 red onions
• 20 mint leaves
• 20 black olives
• Extra virgin olive oil

Into a bowl, slice the beetroot thickly and crumble some sea salt flakes (i like Maldon) and add a spoonful of red wine vinegar on top.

Remove the skin of the oranges and slice same size slices as the beetroot. Slice the red onions into very thin rings. 

Layer up the orange and beetroot and season with a little salt, vinegar, pepper and the extra virgin olive oil. Scatter the red onion and the mint leaves and repeat the seasoning. Finish with olives on top.