Tablescaping muse...Rick Owens & Michele Lamy's dinner party in NYT Mag ~ March 24, 2002 🤍
Michele's Roasted Beet Salad With Horseradish Crème Fraîche
16 to 20 organic baby beets, trimmed and scrubbed
1 16-ounce horseradish root, scrubbed and trimmed
1/2 cup walnut oil
1/2 cup Champagne vinegar
28-ounce containers crème fraîche
Salt and pepper
4 cups organic baby spinach, trimmed and rinsed
4 walnut halves.
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place beets in a
roasting pan and add enough water to come
halfway up the sides of the beets. Cover with foil
and bake until tender, about 45 minutes. Using a
slotted spoon, put beets in a bowl of ice water to
cool. Rub with paper towels to remove skins, slice in
half and place in a bowl. Set aside.
2. Peel the horseradish and cut into 1/2-inch cubes.
Place in a food processor or blender and add 1/4
cup each walnut oil and vinegar. Pulse until
horseradish is medium fine, not puréed. Pour
mixture into a fine-mesh strainer or cheesecloth-
lined sieve over a bowl and press out liquid. Add
crème fraîche to liquid and mix. Season to taste.
3. Place spinach in a bowl. Add 2 tablespoons each
walnut oil and vinegar and season to taste. Toss to
coat. Repeat the process with beets.
4. On each of 4 plates circle the edges with beets
and fill in with spinach. Make another circle of beets
on top of the spinach and add more spinach. Put 2
beet halves on top with a walnut half. Drizzle the
crème fraîche around each salad and serve.
Text by Peter McQuaid
Photos by François Dischinger
