Now that the leaves are starting to change here at home, I am starting accept the fact that it is now fall. Other than the horrendous rain that Asheville as been receiving lately (thank you hurricane Joaquin), this is the best time of year to go hiking and enjoy the relatively cool weather. One of the main reasons that I do not like fall/winter very much is due to the heavy foods that are commonly eaten during this time of year. I understand the nature as to why rich foods are eaten during the cold season, but it really makes me feel quite drab about myself. I much prefer the beautiful produce that spring and summer have to offer and the light, cool dishes that are associated with those months. Some might call me weird or a Debbie Downer, but I can’t help but feel sad about food now of days.
Because of this, I find that it is important to feed the body and soul, but still try and stay in tune with the season. Beets are by far one of my favorite root vegetables. Ever since I was a little kid, I would eat anything that had beets in them, specifically pickled beets! Because I have some in the garden, I figured I might as well us them while they are fresh and make a dish that is “fall-ish” but also incorporates some of my favorite flavors.
Did you know that beets are high in immune-benefiting vitamin C, fiber and essential minerals like potassium and manganese? In addition to that they are full of nitrates which will help enhance your stamina. The nitrates turn into nitric oxide, which help reduce the oxygen cost of low-intensity exercise as well as enhance tolerance to high-intensity exercise! So athletes, eat up!!
I understand that not everyone is as enthusiastic about eating beets as I am, but I promise that this dish will make you want to at least tolerate beets. By creating a flat bread that is topped with beets, goat cheese, and bacon, it will satisfy your salty and sweet cravings and be beneficial to your health! The Recipe is as follows.
Beet, Bacon and Goat Cheese Flatbread
2 red beets
1/4 recipe simple pizza dough, recipe follows
olive oil, for brushing
1/4 cup arugula
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
salt and freshly cracked black pepper
1/4 pound bacon (4 slices), cooked crisp
1/2 cup Trader Joe’s goat cheese with honey
Simple Pizza Dough
1 3/4 cups warm water (105 to 110 degrees F)
1 envelope active dry yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)
2 teaspoons sugar
3 tablespoons olive oil
4 cups bread flour, plus more for dusting
2 teaspoons salt
Nonstick spray
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Wrap the beets in aluminum foil and roast in the oven until the beets are tender and a paring knife inserted in the center is met with no resistance, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Once cooked, set aside until they are cool enough to handle. Then, using a paper towel, rub the skin off the beets and then cut into moons or dice.
Gather up the rest of the ingredients and have them at the ready before you grill your bread.
Preheat a cast-iron grill pan, or a grill, to medium-high heat. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and stretch and press with your hands to form a thin, rectangular shape. If you need to, pick up the dough and let the natural weight of the dough stretch itself out. It doesn’t need to be perfect, matter of fact it is better when it’s not. Once you have the dough in the shape you like, brush one side of the dough with olive oil and lay that side down flat onto the preheated grill. Cook the dough until it is charred and has a crisp texture, about 5 minutes, brush the other side with some oil and then flip the dough and char the second side. Once the bread is charred and cooked, remove it from the grill and assemble the flatbread.
Spread the goat cheese onto the flatbread. Toss the arugula with some lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper and then place it on the flatbread. Top with sliced beets and crispy bacon and another drizzle of olive oil. Cut the flatbread and serve.
Simple Pizza Dough
In a liquid measuring cup, combine the warm water, yeast and sugar. Allow the yeast to dissolve and bloom, about 5 minutes. Once bloomed, add the olive oil.
Meanwhile, in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the flour and salt. Stream in the water/yeast mixture and as the dough begins to come together, switch to a dough hook attachment. Allow the dough to knead, adding a bit more flour if needed, so that the dough releases from the sides of the bowl, 1 to 3 minutes. You should be able to touch the dough and not have the dough stick to your fingers. Once the dough has kneaded and has pulled away from the sides of the bowl, remove the dough from bowl to a floured work surface and, with floured hands, continue to knead it by hand for 1 to 2 minutes. Then form the dough into a round ball and place it into a large bowl sprayed with nonstick spray. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a clean dish towel and let the dough rise in a warm area of your kitchen until it doubles in size, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. After the dough has risen it is ready to be cooked however you’d like!
Cook’s Notes: This dough is wet dough, keep bench flour at the ready and make sure to flour your hands when working with the dough. Trust your gut as a chef, if the dough is to wet, add more flour, if it is too stiff, add a little water.
Sugar is used to feed the yeast which will help the dough to grow. Bread flour will give you a chewier texture because the flour has more gluten. You don’t need to use a thermometer to get the water temperature, it should just feel warm to the touch
Cooks Notes: If you want to make this recipe a lot simpler and not make a homemade dough, I would recommend using Pillsbury Thin Pizza Crust. It will speed up the process of this flatbread. Also if you would like to make a vegetarian version of this flatbread, substitute chopped up walnuts for the bacon. Because I am a fan of balsamic reduction, I ended up adding a nice drizzle over the top of my slice! I hope you enjoy this recipe just as much as I did and start becoming a fan of beets!
xoxo Sarah
MyFood MyWay 