Beet & Plum Salad with Walnuts & Cheese

I've heard a few descriptions and seen a few recipes lately for salads combining beets and plums. The combination caught my imagination immediately, and now that I've tried it I'll be doing it again, for sure. It's a match made in heaven. The only thing I'll change is that in future I will cut the beets and plums smaller than I did for the salad in the picture - you want to be certain to be getting some plum and some beet in every bite.

4 servings
30 minutes prep time BUT start the beets at least 3 hours ahead

Salad:
4 to 8 beets, depending on size (about 450 grams or 1 pound)

1 small head of red leaf lettuce
8-12 blue plums
1/3 cup walnut pieces
1/3 cup crumbled goat cheese or feta

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Wash and trim the beets so there is just half an inch of stem or so on them. Wrap them in foil and bake them until tender, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Let cool. Peel them and cut them in 1 cm cubes.

Wash the lettuce and cut or tear it into bite-sized pieces. Dry well and arrange on individual serving plates or in a salad bowl. Wash the plums and cut them into 1 cm cubes, discarding the pits. Arrange the plums, beets, walnuts and crumbled cheese over the lettuce.

Dressing:
1/4 cup walnut oil
1/4 cup raspberry vinegar
1 teaspoon honey

Whisk together the walnut oil, raspberry vinegar and the honey. If your cheese is not salty, you may wish to add a little salt. Drizzle the dressing over the salad.