This superfast cheese snack is exactly what you need when you’re sipping rosé
You know that feeling: you’re happily sipping rosé in the sun and, after two glasses, you get up and think, ‘Oooops, if I don’t eat something soon I’m going to keel over’? For moments like that, it’s great to have snacks you can throw together in no time, even if you’re a little wobbly, and that are filling enough to keep you from falling off your chair after the next glass. Millefeuille of beetroot with goat’s cheese is one of them.
Millefeuille (pronounced: mil foy) means ‘a thousand layers’, which is a little exaggerated for this dish, but there are layers and it sounds pleasantly fancy, so let’s not quibble.
How to make beetroot millefeuille with goat’s cheese
- Cut the cooked beetroot into slices and arrange them on a flat plate (you can count on 10 slices per person).
- Toast the pine nuts over low heat. Don’t walk away: toasting pine nuts seems like an easy task, but it can quickly go wrong. Before you know it, those little devils are burning, even though a second earlier they were still looking pale and anaemic in the pan. That’s why I always toast pine nuts in the oven—unless I’m tipsy and need to get something on the table quickly.
- Meanwhile, make a fresh, tangy vinaigrette. Mix sunflower oil and white wine vinegar (oil/vinegar ratio: 3/1, so one part acid to three parts oil) with 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard, 1 finely chopped garlic clove and 1/2 tablespoon coarse sea salt in a large mixing bowl using an immersion blender until you have a mayonnaise-like sauce. Then drizzle 1/2 tablespoons of vinaigrette over the beetroot.
- Cut the goat’s cheese into slices of about 5 to 6 cm and fry in a greased frying pan until both sides are golden brown and the inside is soft and creamy.
- Divide this over the beetroot and sprinkle with some of the toasted pine nuts and Parmesan shavings.
- Finally: drizzle some date syrup over the goat’s cheese.
- Serve with: a simple butterhead lettuce salad, again topped with some of the fresh, tangy vinaigrette.
Wine tip
Incidentally, the rosé that got me completely excited isn’t from the famous Provence, but is a Rosato from Italy, made by winery Farina: Bardolino Chiaretto Rosato. The wine is made from the typical Italian grapes Corvina, Rondinella and Molinara and is, in one word: delicious. Soft, rounded, dry and with those lovely summery aromas of strawberry, peach and cherries. Try to stick to just one glass… You won’t manage, bet you? Luckily, then, there’s this snack. Feeling hungrier? Order a pizza (with tuna) or throw a frozen pizza in the oven. This Rosato goes perfectly with those too.
