Beet It

So here goes, my first foray into food blogging.
I have a magical gift for turning grocery odds and ends into decent (even if I do say so myself) meals. This talent comes in terribly handy when I haven't had time to go to the supermarket and all I have to make dinner is a half empty tub of hummus, some leftover spaghetti sauce and a soggy lettuce. I do have to disclose that I have a well stocked pantry and spice cupboard which really is everything.

So here's what I knocked up last night (I wouldn't serve it for a dinner party but it was a fine weeknight supper).
I had one beet, some fingerling potatoes, a couple of chicken breasts and some ricotta salata.

I dusted the chicken with a little flour, all spice, cinnamon and chili powder, then egged it before covering it in polenta and shallow frying it to a crisp crust.

I made a salad of roasted beet, fingerling potatoes, cucumber, olives, parsley, watercress and ricotta salata (a salty hard cheese), then dressed it in a toasted cumin, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, shallot and olive oil dressing.

The tangy, smokey salad was great with the crunchy, tender chicken.