Grilling pizzas and flatbreads certainly isn’t something new. But what topped this one in an article called “Going Meatless on the Grill” in Fine Cooking was, grilled beet slices and figs. I admit I have gone a little beet crazy this summer, using them in cold soups, in salads, both roasted and raw in a fine julienne. I am still harvesting a few fresh beets from our garden before the fall planting becomes ready. We have a few fig trees, but they are young and not producing fruit yet. Figs are in season now and available in most supermarkets. So I thought I would give this recipe a try. The base of this flatbread is a naan, an Indian flat bread that I have made before but because of time constraints today I used a pre-packaged one (horrors!) that is readily available in many supermarkets. I thinly sliced beets on the very sharp Kyocera mandolin. The beet slices were tossed with olive oil, kosher salt and freshly ground pepper before they were placed on the hot grill. The original recipe called for the beet greens to be used in the topping but my beet greens were way past their prime. I substituted arugula that gave the flatbread a peppery kick. A combination of salty goat cheese and a creamy sharp provolone finished this delicious dish.
Beautiful thinly sliced beets remind me of a tie-dyed shirt!
Beet slices on the grill.
Add the naan to the grill once the beet slices have started to brown.
Naan is topped with softened goat cheese, grilled beets and sliced fresh figs. The provolone is scattered over the top and returned to a closed grill to wilt the greens and melt the cheese.