(recipe from “three good things on a plate” by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall)

I have tried this and it’s beautiful. I am the only person who eats beetroot in our house, so I kept the  leftovers – it serves 4  – in the fridge and added some to salads and even had some for supper with a slice of brown crusty bread. You could serve with chicken or fish as a side dish.

Serves 4

500g beetroot

3-4 garlic gloves (lightly bashed)

2 tablespoons Olive oil

A couple of Bay leaves (optional)

A few sprigs of Thyme (optional)

3 Tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar

2 Balls of Mozzarella

Salt & pepper

Method:

Pre-heat the oven to 190/gas mark 5

Peel the beetroot, cut into chunky wedges & put in a roasting dish in which they fit snuggly. Add the garlic gloves. Trickle over the olive oil & 3 tablespoons of water.  Season with salt & pepper.

Tuck in the thyme & bay leaves if using.

Cover tightly with foil and roast in the oven for about an hour until the beetroot is completely tender.

Remove the garlic & herbs.

Transfer the beetroot wedges to a bowl. Drain the roasting juices into a small pan. (if you don’t have very much juice, add a splash of water & stir to deglaze)

Add the balsamic vinegar to the pan & bring to the boil. Let it bubble for a few minutes until it has reduced by about half. Pour almost all of the syrup over the beetroot. (leave a little in the pan)

Leave the beetroot to stand at room temperature for 5-10 minutes, and turn to coat in the syrup a few times.

Place the beetroot on a serving plate. Tear the mozzarella into small chunks and add to the beetroot. Trickle over the remaining syrup from the pan.

Season with salt & pepper & serve as suggested above.