Whoa! Sorry, I kind of flaked out there on posting for a few days. I’m back with some beets. Usually we pass our farmer’s market beets to Lindsay and Chad, since Lindsay is a beet-lover of sorts. But this week we kept them, so I made this salad (which I then fed to Lindsay anyway).

Justin doesn’t usually care for beets…but he loved this salad, and even wanted to keep this weeks’ beets, too. To me they taste like roots, like earth, and I just love their color…even when it gets all over my hands. The mix of beets and tangerines is really yummy, and the dressing is so light and flavorful.

In other news, this week at Moxie/Plume, we’re a part of SXSouth Austin, a great alternative to all the pricey SXSW venues. Cafe Caffeine, next door, will be hosting FREE live music from 1:00 p.m. through 10:00 p.m. for five days straight…some on an indoor stage, others on an outdoor stage. Check out the link above for the lineup. Our own Pam, the owner of Plume, will be singing on Thursday at 1:00 p.m. Moxie will also be hosting a silent auction to benefit NARAL Pro-Choice Texas. Any of you Austinites, come out and see us! It should be tons of fun.

Spinach Salad with Tangerines, Roasted Beets, and Feta

• 4 beets (about 1/2 pound)
• 1/2 teaspoon grated tangerine rind
• 6 cups baby spinach
• 1 cup tangerine sections (about 3 tangerines)
• 1/4 cup (1 ounce) crumbled feta
• 1/4 cup fresh tangerine juice
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon Dijon mustard

Preheat oven to 425ËšF.

Leave root and 1 inch of stem on beets; scrub with a vegetable brush. Place beets on a baking sheet lined with foil; bake for 45 minutes or until tender. Cool slightly. Peel beets; cut each into 8 wedges.

Combine rind, spinach, tangerine sections, and feta in a large bowl. Combine tangerine juice, pepper, lemon juice, oil, salt, and mustard; stir well with a whisk. Pour over salad mixture; toss to combine. Place salad mixture on each of 4 plates; top with beets.

Makes 4 servings.

Adapted from Cooking Light magazine.