A delicious vegetarian roast beetroot & onion galette recipe

I stumbled across this older recipe of mine for a roast beetroot & onion galette with shaved goat’s cheese pecorino. while looking for images to re-edit. I’m teaching myself a few new editing skills in Lightroom so I need images that I can play with. This is a really delicious vegetarian pie that can be the main feature of a vegetarian meal, so I thought I would share it again here with a few extra unpublished images

Don’t be put off by the length of time this pie takes to make; beetroot requires a lengthy stint in the oven to reach cooked perfection. A little hack to decrease the cooking time of beetroot is to steam microwave it before popping it in the oven to bake. You could make the filling in advance and assemble and bake the pie when you want to serve it. The earthy, saltiness of the hard goat cheese marries perfectly with the sweet vegetables, but use Parmesan or soft goat cheese if you prefer.

* In case you jump right in and ask ‘Where can I get goat’s cheese Pecorino, I found an award-winning one at Giovanni’s in Green Point a couple of days ago. It really is an amazing cheese that packs a flavour punch. You don’t need too much either. Soft goat’s cheese like chevin would be my next option, and then after that Parmesan or Pecorino.

A few more beetroot recipes you might like

Baby beetroot and roasted red onion tart tartin with balsamic, caramel & thyme

Carrot & beetroot cake with caramel cream cheese frosting

Beetroot falafel on a toasted pita with a spicy chutney

Apple beetroot & ginger juice

Beetroot & barley ‘risotto’

Prep Time:20

Cook Time:1 10

Ingredients

600 g red onions cut into quarters
500 – 550g beets peeled and cut into a similar size to the onions
2 T olive oil
3 – 4 sprigs of thyme
60 g brown sugar
4 T balsamic vinegar
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
50 g goats cheese Pecorino or Parmesan cheese

For the pastry

¾ cups 120g cake flour + extra for dusting
¾ cup 120g whole-wheat flour
a pinch salt
170 g butter cut into small cubes
⅓ cup ice-cold water
1 beaten egg or melted butter to brush the pastry

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 180C / 350 F and spread the beets and onions on two separate trays. Drizzle a tablespoon of olive oil over each and toss to coat. Roast the onions for 40 minutes and the beets for an hour.
While the vegetables are roasting, make the pastry.
Using a food processor, briefly mix the flour and salt. Add the butter and pulse until the mix resembles breadcrumbs. Add the water and pulse until the dough just comes together (do not over mix). Wrap the pastry in cling film and store in the fridge until ready to use.
Roll it out into a rustic round shape on a floured surface.
Put the sugar and balsamic in a small pot on the stove and allow this to bubble for about 5 minutes until it starts turning into a thick syrupy consistency. Swirl the pot every now and again.
Toss the roasted beets and onions together and place these in the middle of the pastry round – allowing enough space around the rims to fold it in.
Drizzle the balsamic syrup over the vegetables and season with salt and pepper.
Fold the pastry in, and brush with either meted butter, or, if you prefer a more golden look, beaten egg.
Bake for 25 – 30 minutes until the pastry turns golden brown.
Shave the cheese over the top and serve warm or cold.