Sure this takes a bit of time to prep since you'll be chopping all of these vegetables but think about how much time you'll save later chewing! You could easily not roast your beets and make this a raw salad but I prefer the richness of flavor and texture of a roasted beet to a raw one any day of the week. 

I'm not a fan of overly dressed salads. If all you taste is the dressing then why not just drink that? What I love about this salad is that you can really taste each veggie and the dressing is just one yummy component. (Don't drown your food!)

Serves 4

If you don’t already have roasted beets lying around, you’ll need to make these first. Also, if you think you can just use canned beets instead, please stop reading this and seek professional help immediately. 

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Cut the tops and bottoms off of the beets and then put them in a baking dish with about 1/2 inch of water. Cover the baking dish with foil and then roast the beets for about 40-45 minutes until they are tender. (Since you're already firing up the oven to roast some beets. Roast some extra beets and make this cake next.)

Once they are done, drain them in a colander and then run cold water over them to cool them a bit so you can handle them. Rub the beets with your fingers under the cold water to remove the skins. Put the beets in the refrigerator until they are chilled through.

Take the romaine and cut off the bitter base about an inch from the bottom and discard. Chop the lettuce into small, bite-size pieces.

Dice the carrots, beans, broccoli, apple and beets and add them to the bowl with the lettuce.

In a dressing mixer or mason jar add the Dijon mustard, vinegar, olive oil, agave nectar, salt and pepper. Shake the dressing until well blended and the salt is dissolved. 

Drizzle the dressing over the salad and toss to combine.

Nutritional Information: Per serving 236.5 calories, 4.25 g protein, 12 g fat