Beet Salad

Remove beet tops from beets, leaving an inch or so of them on the root. Wash beets well. Place in a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and cook. Test the beets with a fork until you can get the fork in about 1/2 an inch. You want the beets cooked well enough for the skins to slide off easily but not for the flesh to get mushy. Put the beets into cold water (you may need to add additional cold water...and I recommend letting the tap run) and slide off skins with your fingers. If they don't slip off easily, cook them longer. Let beets cool and then use a hand grater to cut them into pieces. You want around pizza cheese size to about 4 times that size. You may have to stop in the middle a couple of times to let the beets cool. Add a good olive oil and vinegar to the grated beets. I used them in about equal amounts, maybe heavier on the oil. About 2 Tbs of each. Adjust to taste. Toss. Add 2-3 teaspoons (1 dollop) sour cream and 1 teaspoon mustard (a good Dijon). Adjust to taste but don't make too creamy. Mix. Add feta cheese, crumbled into tiny pieces. Mix. Put the beets into the refrigerator until you're ready to serve them. Serve cold. I only soaked the beets for a couple of hours, but the leftovers are great today so I think in the future I would make this salad a day in advance. Just before serving, top with a dollop of sour cream and then top that with some fresh chopped herbs or edible flowers. I used wild onion flowers because they are all over my yard, but dill would work well too. The salad is very rich; about half of it made 3 people very happy.