Fennel is crunchy and slightly sweet, adding a refreshing contribution to summer salads. Fennel’s subtle flavor works just fine on its own, but does wonders when combined with other foods. A simple salad of beets, oranges, onions and Dijon vinaigrette has more zing with the addition of crunchy, raw fennel.

Serves 4

Ingredients

Salad

• 1 fennel bulb, peeled and thinly sliced
• 2 beets, peeled
• 2 oranges
• ½ Bermuda onion, thinly sliced into rings

Vinaigrette

• 1 tablespoon freshly chopped shallots
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon Dijon style mustard
• Salt to taste
• Freshly ground black pepper

Preparation

1. Place beets in a sauce pan, cover with water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until beets are easily pierced with the tip of a knife. Drain, cool, “peel” and dice into medium size cubes. TIP: cooked and cooled beets will glide easily out of their skins so no real need to “peel.”
2. Peel the oranges and remove the segments over a bowl to reserve the juice.
3. Place all of the ingredients plus the reserved orange juice in a container with a lid. Shake.
4. Adjust the salt and pepper to taste
5. Toss with fennel and beet mixture.
6. Refrigerate for ½ hour.

Nutrition Facts

Per Cup

Calories 210, Protein 3 grams, Carbohydrate 25 grams, Fiber 6 grams, Fat 10 grams, Cholesterol 0 mg, Sodium 219 mg