River Cottage

1. Scrub the beetroot well, but leave them whole, then place on a large piece of foil. Scatter with the garlic, the leaves from the thyme, if you're using it, and some salt and pepper, then trickle over the oil. Scrunch up the foil to make a baggy but tightly sealed parcel, place it on a baking tray and put it in an oven preheated to 200°C/Gas Mark 6.

2. Roast until tender - about an hour, though it could take longer. The beetroot are cooked when a knife slips easily into the flesh. Leave to cool, then top and tail them and remove the skin. Cut into wedges and place in a large bowl.

3. Whisk together all the dressing ingredients. Arrange the salad leaves on serving plates and trickle on a little of the dressing. Roughly crumble the cheese over the beetroot, add the remaining dressing and toss together loosely with your hands. Arrange on top of the leaves, scatter over the redcurrants and serve.

Variation: Feta, beetroot and parsley salad

Prepare the beetroot as above, then place it in a large bowl with 200g feta cheese, crumbled into small chunks, 75g flat-leaf parsley leaves and, if you like, 50g lightly toasted walnuts. Mix the dressing as above, pour on to the salad and toss lightly with your hands. Serve straight away, with brown bread on the side.

Variation: Roast squash salad

You can replace the beetroot in either of the above recipes with a similar quantity of squash, such as butternut or Crown Prince. Deseed the squash and cut into chunks with the skin still on. Roast with the garlic, thyme and oil – in an open tray rather than a foil parcel – for about 40 minutes, turning once or twice, until tender and lightly browned. Leave to cool, then assemble the salad with the roast squash chunks replacing the beetroot.