Roasted Beet & Goat Cheese Flatbread with Basil Pesto

There is a lot we miss about living on the West Coast. Seeing our family and friend regularly, the amazing weather, and, of course, Disneyland. Especially at this time of year when the Disney California Adventure Food & Wine Festival is going on. It’s one of our favorite events of the year. So, since we were unable to attend this year, we decided to bring a little bit of it home to us by recreating one of their tasty dishes. The Roasted Beet & Goat Cheese Flatbread with Basil Pesto from the Golden Dreams festival marketplace. This dish has a lot of complex flavors but is simpler to create than you make think. That made it a perfect Disney Dish.

On to a little golden taste of California!

Our Ingredients

One of the best things about this Roasted Beet & Goat Cheese Flatbread with Basil Pesto recipe is that it doesn’t need a lot of hard-to-get ingredients. Most can be found simply within your favorite grocery store.

The one item we got stuck on was the Golden Beets. We could just not find them locally. So, as you’ll see from the photos, we replaced them with more traditional Red Beets. They are a perfectly fine substitute. However, if you can find their Golden cousins, definitely use them. They tend to be a little sweeter and less “earthy” than the red varieties. Their color also adds a nice contrast to the dish.

Let’s get cooking!

Roasting Our Beets

The portion of the dish that will take the longest is getting the Beets roasted and then cool enough to peel their skins. So, that’s where will start.

Begin by preheating your oven to 400°F.

Next, trim the tops and bottoms off of your Beets and wash them thoroughly to remove any residual soil. They are “Root Vegetables” after all so, just like potatoes, they often can be a little dirty.

• When working with Beets, I often wear gloves and possibly an apron or a shirt I don’t care that much about. Beet juice can easily stain your clothing, so it’s best to be careful.

Now toss the cleaned Beets in a little Avocado or Olive Oil and place them on a foil-lined pan. Roast at 400°F for approximately 40-45 minutes.

Once the Beets are completely roasted, remove them from the oven and let rest until cool enough to handle.

Once cooled, using a clean towel that you don’t mind if it gets stained or paper towels, rub the outside of the Beets to remove the skin. It should release itself fairly easily this way. If you are having difficulty getting the skin off, the Beets may need a little more time in the oven.

Once the skins have been removed from the Roasted Beets, cut each one in half and slice to approximately ¼” thickness. Like in the picture, below.

Place the sliced Beets in a container and store them in the refrigerator until ready to use.

The Flatbread Dough

With our Beets Roasted, it’s time to get our Flatbread started. As with any of our yeast-based doughs, the first step is to wake up the yeast.

• I know!  We’ve been over this before. And thank you for reading some of my other recipes if you already know this. However, I’m sure many of you have not read most of them (or possibly even any of them). So, I’m going to share this info again, just as a refresher.

Anyway, we “wake up” the yeast through a process called blooming. This happens by mixing the yeast with the warm water and the sugar. Let it stand for about 5 minutes. The yeast should begin to bubble or “bloom”. Once it does, it’s ready to go!

• If after 5 minutes, your yeast doesn’t “bloom”, it may be old and essentially “dead”. If that is the case, you should go ahead and head to the store to get a fresh supply

Next, place the all-purpose flour and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer with the dough hook attachment in place. Add the water, sugar, and yeast mixture, along with the olive oil, and mix on medium for about 5 minutes and the dough comes together. The dough should be mostly smooth and elastic. If it seems too wet, add a little more flour. If it’s too dry, a little more warm water.

• If you don’t have an electric mixer with a dough hook, you can also need it by hand for about 10 minutes.

Remove the dough from the bowl and knead it a couple of times by hand. Place it in a large, greased bowl and cover it with a towel. Move the bowl to a warm spot and allow it to rise for about an hour.

The Pesto

While the dough is rising, it’s time to make our Pesto. The good news is that it’s pretty quick and simple to put together.
Place the Fresh Basil Leaves, Sliced Garlic, Lemon Juice, Pine Nuts, and Coarse Salt in a medium food processor along with the Shredded
Parmigiano and Pecorino Cheeses. Pulse a few times until the ingredients are lightly pureed, like in the photo below.

Now, begin to drizzle in the Olive Oil while pulsing the food processor until the Pesto reaches your desired consistency. I prefer it rather thick,
as you can see from the picture below.

Taste and adjust the seasonings with more Salt or Lemon Juice, if necessary. Then reserve until ready to use.

Our Crust

Once the dough has risen until it’s almost doubled in size, it’s time to get our Roasted Beet & Goat Cheese Flatbread with Basil Pesto together. Starting with our flatbread crust.

Begin by preheating the oven to 475°F.

Meanwhile, turn the risen dough onto a cutting board and cut it into 8, equal-sized portions, and roll each in a ball.

Take one of the portions and flatten it by hand or using a rolling pin. They should form approximately 5” rounds that are somewhere around bout ¼” thick. Repeat the process with the other dough portions. Place the flattened dough onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush the tops with olive oil and place in the oven.

Bake for about 10 minutes at 475°F. It’s okay if it’s not cooked through, yet. You’ll finish the process after you add the toppings.

Putting Our Roasted Beet & Goat Cheese Flatbread with Basil Pesto Together

Time to get these tasty Disney Dishes ready for our family and guests. Begin by spreading about 1 – 1 ½ tablespoons of the Basil Pesto on each partially baked
Crust.

Then, place your desired amount of Roasted Beet Slices on top of the Pesto. I used 3 or 4 on each flatbread depending on their size. Return to the oven and bake at 475°F for an additional 5 minutes or until the outer crust is golden brown. Remove from the oven and “crumble” your desired amount of Goat Cheese over the Flatbreads and top with Arugula or other Fresh Greens.

Serve immediately and enjoy!

Our Final Conclusion

This Roasted Beet & Goat Cheese Flatbread with Basil Pesto is bright, vibrant and perfect for Spring celebrations. The crust is crispy on the outside but light and fluffy on the inside. It’s the perfect vessel to carry its lovely toppings. The Basil provides just enough richness and herbaceous flavor to act as a wonderful foil to the sweet and earthy Roasted Beets. But it’s the Goat Cheese that brings the entire dish together with its luscious, creaminess. Then the Fresh Greens add a pop of life and a bit of freshness right at the end.

Every bite is the near-perfect blend of texture and flavor that will bring a Springtime smile to your guest’s faces.

There is only one thing I would suggest you add to this Disney Dish. A light drizzle of Balsamic Glaze or just plain old Balsamic Vinegar adds a brilliant extra hit of acid and sweetness that pushes this dish over the top. I highly recommend adding it.

If you have any questions about this or any of our recipes, just hit us up below in the comments. You can also reach us through our Contact Us page or through email.

 

Roasted Beet & Goat Cheese Flatbread with Basil Pesto
Makes approximately 8 – 5” flatbreads

Crust Dough

• 1 ½ tsp – Active Dry Yeast
• 1 ½ tsp – Granulated Sugar
• 1 cup – Warm Water
• 3 cups – All-Purpose Flour
• 1 tbls – Olive Oil (plus another teaspoon for brushing the dough before
• baking)
• 1 tsp – Salt

Roasted Beets

• 2 or 3 – Medium Sized Golden or Red Beets
• 1 tbls – Avocado or Olive Oil

For the Pesto

• 2 cups – Fresh Basil Leaves
• 2 cloves – Fresh Garlic – Sliced
• 1 tbls – Fresh Lemon Juice
• 2 tbls – Pine Nuts
• ¼ tsp – Coarse Salt
• 2 tbls – Parmigiana Cheese – Shredded
• 2 tbls – Pecorino Cheese – Shredded
• 1½ tbls – Olive Oil

Other Ingredients

• 4 oz – Goat Cheese
• Fresh Arugula or Other Fresh Greens
• Balsamic Glaze (if desired)

For the Flatbread Crust

• Add the yeast and sugar to the warm water and stir to combine. Allow to “bloom” for approximately 5 minutes
• Place the all-purpose flour and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer equipped with a dough hook.
• Add the water & yeast mixture and the olive oil
• Using the electric mixer “knead” the dough on medium speed until it becomes smooth and elastic. Approximately 5 minutes. You can also knead the dough by hand for about 10 minutes if you do not have an electric mixer
• Place the kneaded dough in a lightly greased bowl and cover with a towel
• Place in a warm spot and let rise for approximately 1 hour

Roasted Beets

• Preheat the oven to 400°F
• Trim and wash the Golden or Red Beets and toss with the Avocado or Olive Oil
• Place the Beets evenly on a baking sheet lined with foil
• Roast in a preheated 400°F oven for approximately 40-45 minutes
• Remove from the oven and let sit until the Roasted Beets have cooled
• Using a towel that you don’t care if it gets stained, or paper towels, rub the outside of the Roasted Beets to remove the skins
• Cut the peeled Roasted Beets in half and slice to approximately ¼” thick
• Reserve until ready to use

For the Basil Pesto

• Place the Fresh Basil Leaves, Sliced Garlic, Lemon Juice, Coarse Salt and Pine Nuts in the canister of a medium food processor along with the
  Parmigiana and Pecorino Cheeses
• Pulse the food processor until the ingredients are lightly pureed
• Slowly drizzle in the Olive Oil while pulsing the food processor until the Pesto reaches your desired consistency and is somewhat creamy
• Taste and adjust the seasonings with more Coarse Salt, if necessary
• Reserve until ready to use

For the Roasted Beet & Goat Cheese Flatbread with Basil Pesto

• Preheat the oven to 475°F
• Remove the risen crust dough from the bowl and divide into 8 equal
  portions
• Roll each portion into a ball
• Using your hands or a rolling pin, flatten the dough into a round approximately ¼-½” thick
• Place the flattened dough onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper then brush the top lightly with olive oil
• Place the crusts into the oven and bake for approximately 10 minutes at 475°F
• Remove the partially baked crusts and top each evenly with 1 – 1 ½ tablespoons of the Basil Pesto
• Place your desired amount of Roasted Beet Slices on top of the Pesto
• Return to the oven and bake for about another 5 minutes and the crust is lightly browned
• Remove from the oven and crumble your desired amount of Goat Cheese on each Flatbread
• Top with Arugula or other Fresh Greens
• Drizzle the top with a little Balsamic Glaze (if desired)
• Serve immediately and enjoy

If you enjoyed this dish, be sure to check out some of our other Disney Festival-themed recipes:

Guinness Baileys Milkshake Recipe

Warm Berry Buckle Recipe from the Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival

Potato Cheddar Biscuits with Salmon Tartare

Seared Scallops with Chorizo and Red Pepper Coulis

Tostada de Chorizo from Las Posadas Holiday Kitchen

Smoked Salmon Potato Latkes Recipe

Kalua-Style Pulled Pork Tots with Polynesian BBQ Sauce & Mango Salsa

Santa Maria Style Tri-Tip With Chimichurri

Petite Plant-Based Burgers with Guacamole

If you’re a Disney Fan, be sure to check out our Disney Podcast, as well.