Prepare the crunchy seeds: Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.
In a small bowl toss all the seeds with honey, 1 teaspoon olive oil, and a big pinch of salt. Spread in a single layer onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake in the heated oven until toasted; 8 to 10 minutes. Watch carefully as they burn easily. Set aside to cool then break into small but variously sized clumps.
Roast the beets: Raise the oven temperature to 400 degrees F.
Remove the greens and scrub the beets well. Arrange the beets on a roasting pan large enough to hold them in a single layer and add the garlic cloves, orange peels, thyme, bay leaf, black peppercorns, and water. Drizzle the mixture with remaining ¼ cup olive oil and season generously with salt. Cover tightly with foil and bake up to 1 hour, or until the beets are tender (start checking at 40 minutes); transfer to a large rimmed baking sheet and let cool somewhat; discard the liquid and aromatics. If you are using multiple colors of beets roast each color separately as the cooking times vary and red beets will discolor the other beets.
When cool enough to handle (but still warm) peel and trim the beets and slice them into bite-sized wedges. Separate the beets by color to avoid discoloration.
Cut the persimmon rounds in half to create half moons, set aside.
To serve: Divide the beets and persimmons between 4 to 6 individual plates. Arrange them artfully. I chose a ring pattern for a holiday presentation, but any arrangement is fine. Sprinkle each one with blue cheese and crunchy seeds to taste then arrange parsley leaves on top. Drizzle with olive oil and serve with lemon wedges for spritzing.
What a gorgeous salad! I love the presentation too, very clever! I also love your seeds recipe, definitely going to give this salad a go, I’ve never incorporated persimmons into a recipe before and pairing them with roasted beets sounds awesome!
Brilliant! Delicious flavors and such a creative, beautiful presentation! Happy Holidays! XO
Just lovely Greg!! Cheers ~Bijouxs
What a fun, seasonal salad! I’ve seen loads of persimmons in the market—and yet, I’ve never tasted one. Time to fix that!!
Gorgeous. Simply gorgeous. And it looks so flavorful, too! Bravo.
That is the most beautiful salad I’ve ever seen you clever, clever man
I love this and I am going to make it for my Christmas dinner.