Recipe: Trellis Beet Salad
This vibrant salad from Chef Joe at Trellis Restaurant celebrates locally grown greens and offers notes of bright citrus and warm spices. He recommends using the freshest local farm produce you can find; baby arugula, spring mix, or tender spinach all shine here.The dressing can be saved for a couple of weeks and used with other salads as well.
Beets
You’ll need about a pound of roasted or pickled red or golden beets. Trellis pickles their beets in-house to bring out the natural sweetness and depth, but good-quality canned pickled beets work wonderfully at home too. If you plan to roast them at home (400F for 40-60 minutes), be sure to make extras because they’ll keep well in the fridge for up to a week.
Yogurt Dressing Ingredients
- 2 cups plain yogurt
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 4 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tbsp ground cumin
- Zest and juice of 1 orange
- Zest and juice of 1 lemon
Yogurt Dressing Instructions:
- Combine all ingredients and mix well until smooth.
- Toss diced beets with a generous spoonful of the yogurt dressing just before serving.
- (Tip: Beets will bleed into the yogurt over time, so dress them right before plating for the best presentation.)
Orange Vinaigrette
- 1 cup orange juice
- 1 ½ tsp Dijon mustard
- 4 tsp honey
- 2 ½ tsp ground ginger
- 2 ½ tsp ground cumin
- 1 small shallot, minced
- 1 large clove garlic, minced
- Pinch of salt & pepper
Salad Instructions
- Fresh local greens (baby arugula preferred, or spring mix/spinach)
- Yogurt-dressed beets
- Orange vinaigrette
- Crushed nuts (Trellis recommends locally roasted hazelnuts)
Lightly toss the greens with the orange vinaigrette. Top with the dressed beets and finish with a sprinkle of crushed nuts of your choosing.
Wine Pairing Recommendations
The earthy sweetness of the beets, bright citrus vinaigrette, creamy yogurt dressing, and peppery greens make this salad incredibly versatile for spring wine pairings. Here are a few favorites from the Dundee Hills we especially love alongside it:
Torii Mor Pinot Blanc: Bright and refreshing, this Pinot Blanc offers lively citrus and orchard fruit notes with crisp acidity that beautifully complements the orange vinaigrette and creamy yogurt dressing. Its clean finish keeps the salad feeling light and vibrant while allowing the earthy beets and toasted hazelnuts to shine.
Holloran Sauvignon Blanc: This Sauvignon Blanc brings expressive citrus, herbal, and mineral-driven notes that pair wonderfully with the peppery arugula and warm spice elements in the salad. The wine’s freshness cuts through the richness of the yogurt dressing while enhancing the salad’s bright seasonal flavors.
Durant Pinot Gris: A classic Oregon pairing for spring vegetables and citrus-forward dishes. Durant’s Pinot Gris offers balanced acidity with ripe fruit and floral characteristics that complement both roasted and pickled beets. Its rounded texture pairs especially well with the creamy yogurt dressing and local hazelnuts.
