Seasonal fruit and veggie combo results in vibrant, flavorful dish
We tend to pigeonhole food into “sweet” or “savory” categories, but this recipe celebrates the delicious reality that nature doesn't play that way. Each of its key ingredients has a nuanced range that covers both ends of that flavor spectrum, and they come together here in a delightful dish that lets them shine fully.
The inspiration for it came from pondering how well slices of roasted apples, with their hint of tartness and caramelized sugars, would pair with the sweet-savory duality of roasted beets. I imagined them served with a crunchy, fragrant herbed topping and decided to give that a sweet-savory essence, too, with toasted almonds lightly glazed in honey and seasoned with fresh rosemary, orange zest and a pinch of salt.
To carry the array of flavors and textures and add a creamy element, I served it all scattered atop a smear of Greek yogurt, which is famously comfortable in dishes both sweet (with honey and fruit, which this recipe has) and savory (with olive oil, herbs and vegetables, which this recipe also has).
The result is a versatile celebration of the season that defies categorization. But if pressed, I suppose I'd call it a savory dish with sweet elements that makes for a satisfying first course, afternoon snack or part of a brunch or Middle Eastern appetizer spread with cocktails.
• Ellie Krieger's most recent cookbook is “Weeknight Wonders: Delicious Healthy Dinners in 30 Minutes or Less” (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013). She blogs and offers a weekly newsletter at elliekrieger.com.