Beautiful beetroot salad

Did anyone else over-indulge at Easter? 

It should be pretty much a given, what with chocolate eggs, Easter meals and plenty of wine. But it was totally worth it!

Today it was back to reality. Back to work and trying to maintain some semblance of a healthy lifestyle (such as it is). I don't know about you but I sometimes struggle with inspiration for healthy food, and no more so than when I have had a fully indulgent few days.

I tend to find inspiration in the usual places - recipe books, blogs, pinterest, restaurants etc. Today I found it in a rather unusual place...

My own face. Yep. And not in a vain way. More in a "I worked out after four days of chocolate and wine and turned myself into a beetroot". Yes I'm on the floor, and yes it is because I was too tired to stand.

And that reminded me that I had two beetroots nestling in my vegetable drawer. I had a hate relationship with beetroot until a couple of years ago - it tended to make me think of the vinegar laden stuff I used to pick out of salads, and I genuinely disliked it.

But then I discovered roasted beetroot, and it is truly delicious. If there are any beetroot haters out there then I recommend trying this salad. It may just convert you in to a beetroot lover, I hope it does.

This beetroot salad recipe is healthy and delicious. Plus with ingredients as pretty as these, you know it's going to be beautiful too.

2 large beetroots - peeled and chopped into chunks

1 bulb of garlic, separated into cloves

Bulgar wheat - enough for however many portions you want

2 large shallots, or 3 small ones - sliced thinly into moons or half moons

Handful black olives - sliced thinly

Olive Oil

Balsamic Vinegar

6 or 7 sprigs of thyme

Handful of mint

Pre-heat your over to around 200. Pop your beetroot, garlic and thyme into a roasting dish and drizzle with some a generous glug of olive oil.

While they are cooking, cook your bulgar wheat according to the packet instructions.

Once it is ready and cooled slightly, mix in the olives and shallots. 

Mix a simple dressing of olive oil and balsamic vinegar. You could also use lime or lemon juice for this - I didn't have any in the house though so went for balsamic vinegar. General rule is two parts olive oil to one part acid. Season with salt and pepper.

The beetroot will take about half an hour depending on the size of the chunks. Once it is softened remove it from the oven. 

Squeeze the garlic cloves into the dressing. If any are too hard to squeeze (which dependent on size they may be) then remove them from their skins and chop them into small pieces. Mix with the bulgar wheat.

Combine the beetroot, bulgar wheat and dressing together. Garnish with chopped mint.

Enjoy!