Roasted pecans, beet, avocado, and goat cheese salad on mix greens

Lost Night. A night of friends, food, and good TV. I ended up making 4 dishes... and this was the starter.

heat oven to 375.

2 cups of pecans
1/4 cup sugar
canola oil

while the oven is preheating mix the pecans while drizzling the canola oil to coat. Pour over sugar and mix thoroughly. Use tin foil and prep it cookie sheet with a spray of Pam. Pour into a single layer and bake for 10 minutes.


2 bunches of beets.
a bottle of balsamic vinegar
water

Increase heat to 400. Pour enough balsamic vinegar into a baking dish. Fill half way with water. Take beats and trim stems, and scrub beets. cut the beets in half. Place into the roasting pan and bake for an hour or until tender. I ended up increasing the heat for the last 20 minutes to 425.

Fill a large bowl of ice water. Drop the beets in the ice water to shock them and stop them from cooking. Peel the beets, slice and dice.

Balsamic Vinagrette:

1 glove of garlic
1/2 tsp of Dijon mustard
balsamic vinegar
extra virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon of italian seasoning
honey
Salt and Pepper to taste

Crush and mince garlic and place in a small bowl. Add the mustard. Pour in some balsamic vinegar, and be sure to double the amount of olive oil to vinegar. add in seasonings. Drizzle in some honey and be sure to stir vigorously.

1/2 bag of organic baby spinach
1/2 bag of organic romaine greens
2 ripe avocados, pitted, removed from its skin, and diced.
roasted pecans from above
crumbled goat cheese

In a large bowl, mix the greens. Place on top diced avocados, pecans, and roasted beets. Toss the balsamic dressing in and mix thoroughly. top with crumbled goat cheese and toss again.