A soft English, Irish or Welsh goat's cheese lends itself perfectly to a refreshing starter or main course salad. The salad leaves can be purchased in a bag for convenience, but if you do have some good leaves in the garden, such as dandelions, use them too. I like to team these with some young beetroots -- they make a great salad and are a good excuse to use the extra virgin rapeseed oil from Suffolk that I love. Ingredients DRESSING 1 tablespoon white wine or cider vinegar 1/2 tablespoon clear honey 4 tablespoons extra virgin rapeseed oil or olive oil SALAD 1 3/4 ounces walnuts 1/2 teaspoon sea salt 1 teaspoon olive oil 5 1/2 ounces Goat Cheese soft English, Irish, or Welsh, at room temperature 5 ounces baby salad leaves or mixture of sorrel & dandelion leaves 7 ounces baby beetroots cooked Chives snipped into 2 inch lengths

Instructions
Preheat the grill. Make the dressing by whisking all the ingredients together; season to taste. Put the walnuts on a small baking tray and mix with the sea salt and olive oil, then grill for a few minutes until lightly toasted.

Break the cheese into rough 3/4 inch pieces and arrange on plates with the salad leaves, beetroot, and walnuts. Drizzle with the dressing and scatter the chives over.


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Yields: 4 Servings
     Waitrose Food Illustrated


notes:  Pungent French goat's cheeses work well with flinty Savignon Blanc, but the softer English versions are better with a vivacious Chardonnay such as this South African example, especially when combined with the sweetness of beetroot: Danie de Wet Earth and Sky 2006 Cardonnay, Robertson, South Africa.

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