Orange Roasted Beets And Shallots With Orange-Mint Gremolata

These roasted beets from Robin Robertson's Vegan Planet are a real treat.

Orange Roasted Beets and Shallots with Orange-Mint Gremolata
Adapted from Robin Robertson, Vegan Planet (2003)

• 2 Tbs. olive oil
• About 1 1/2 cu. orange juice reduced to about a 1/4 cu. or less
• 8 beets (a mixture of red and golden beets would have looked nicer), trimmed, scrubbed, quartered
  
• 4 shallots, peeled, halved
• salt, pepper
• Orange Gremolata (recipe follows)

Fire up your oven to 450°. Whisk the olive oil and orange reduction together and mix together with the beets and shallots. Spread the beets and shallots into an oiled baking dish or tray. Season with salt, pepper. Cover the baking dish. Roast covered for about 50 minutes. After about 25 minutes have elapsed, stir the veggies; after about 40 minutes have elapsed, remove the cover. Serve topped with some of the orange gremolata.

Orange-Mint Gremolata
Adapted from Robin Robertson, Vegan Planet (2003)

The mint really works here in a way that makes me wonder if the traditional parsley might not.

• Zest of one large orange
• 1 shallot, chopped
• 1/3 cu. chopped fresh mint

Ideally, you would place all the ingredients into a small food processor and whiz them up a bit, but not too much—you want a nice even mixture, not a paste. Alternatively, mince the ingredients together with a knife.