Wild Rice & Roasted Beet Salad

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Cut tops off beets and trim root ends. Wash beets and greens. Wrap each beet in foil. Place on a baking sheet. Coarsely chop 3 cups of the beet greens; set aside. (Reserve any remaining greens for another use.) Bake beets 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until tender. Remove foil; let beets cool 15 minutes. To remove skins, wrap beets, one at a time, in a paper towel and gently rub off the skins. Cut beets into bite-size pieces.

Meanwhile, rinse wild rice in a fine-mesh sieve. Combine wild rice and the water in a small saucepan. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, 40 to 50 minutes or until rice is tender and some of the grains split. Drain rice in a colander. Rinse with cold water until cooled. Drain again.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add reserved beet greens, shallot and garlic. Cook 3 to 5 minutes or until greens are wilted. Remove from heat; let cool.

For vinaigrette, combine red wine vinegar, walnut oil, maple syrup, salt and pepper in a screw-top jar. Cover and shake well to combine; set aside.

To assemble salad, combine cooled wild rice, beet pieces, cooked greens mixture and pecans in a serving bowl. Pour vinaigrette over salad; toss to coat. Top with Gorgonzola (or feta) cheese. Chill 30 minutes before serving.