New Favorite Way to Eat Beets (Recipe Included)

I'll start off by saying I am not really the type of chef that uses exact measurements unless I'm baking or following a specific recipe. When I do my own cooking I sort of just wing it, with a lot of taste-testings during the cooking process. Eventually (hopefully) I get something I like. Anyone else like that?

This new beet salad recipe is no different. Actually, a good portion of the recipe is inspired by a beet salad I tried at a deli in a local health food market in which only the ingredients were listed, not the measurements of each. I'd also been preparing beets in a similar way lately so I decided to combine my ingredients with some of the ones from the health food place for a fresh new dish. What I love about this beet salad is the delicious sweetness and tangy-ness from the orange juice and apple cider vinegar, as well as a unique creaminess from the mustard and crunchiness from the celery. Mmmmm.

Beet Salad

Ingredients (organic preferred)
2 large beets, chopped into chunks or sliced into about half-dollar size--however you like
1 head of celery
1-2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 orange (you'll just be using the juice of the whole thing)
2-4 tbsp creamy mustard (I used Annie's Organic Horseradish Mustard)
1-2 packs stevia (or sweetener of choice)
garlic, to taste (I used a frozen cube from Trader Joe's, about 1-2 cloves worth)
fresh grated ginger, to taste (about a tsp or so?)
salt, to taste
extra virgin olive oil
water
optional: parsley to garnish

Directions
Cut up your beets, heat a large skillet with olive oil, add beets to pan and start sauting on a medium heat. After a few minutes, add some water and more EVOO--just enough for the beets to absorb it, not so much that it becomes soupy. Meanwhile, cut celery into thin slices.

A few minutes later, add apple cider vinegar, the juice of one full orange, and garlic. Be sure to squeeze in ALL of the juice of the orange (you could even use 1.5 oranges I think, it gives great flavor).

Add garlic, salt to taste (don't overdo it on the salt, this is more of a "sweet" salad), fresh ginger to taste, and the chopped celery.

Let all of this simmer for a while on low-med heat until the beets start to get soft. Add more water/EVOO if you need to prevent any burning, but with the OJ, vinegar, etc., you should be ok.

Near the end add in mustard and stevia (or sweetener of choice).

Keep on a low heat until all ingredients are well absorbed into the beets--it should not be liquidy when it's done. I probably let mine cook for 30-40min total, maybe longer? Sorry wasn't paying attention to time :/

This salad can be served warm or cold--it's delicious either way!!! As leftovers, it just gets better too!