A wonderful beetroot and avocado salad

Ottolenghi is an expensive but amazing chain of delicatessen restaurants.  The first time I visited was to the one in Islington, and was overwhelmed by the piles of delicious salads, breads, cakes ... It's one of those places you struggle to work out what you don't want to eat, rather than the other way round.  There is also one in Motcomb Street (opposite Rococco) and a fantastic Ottolenghi cookery book, from which O once cooked a fennel and pomegranate salad - crispy and sweet with red juice.

Anyway, browsing the Guardian online again I found a recipe by patron chef Yotam Ottolenghi (I don't mean to be partisan, but the Guardian just always seem to have by far the best food section).  I thought I'd post it as something to try next time I make a salad.  It has a lot of ingredients that I don't have in the fridge, so may be a special occasion treat.

Yotam Ottolenghi's beetroot and avocado salad

4 medium raw beetroots (around 350g in total)
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
3 tbsp sherry vinegar
4 tbsp olive oil, plus a little extra to finish
½ tsp caster sugar
1-3 tsp savoury chilli sauce or paste (Tabasco or Mexican Cholula hot sauce, for instance)
1 tsp salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 medium avocados, peeled and thinly sliced
10g coriander leaves
10g mint leaves
20g pea shoots (or, failing that, lamb's lettuce)
150g broad beans, blanched, refreshed and skinned (or frozen soya beans, quickly blanched and refreshed)
Roasted, sliced hazelnuts
Sliced goats' cheese

Peel the beetroots and slice them very thinly, around 2-3mm thick – if you have one, use a mandolin. (If your beets are large, halve them after peeling, then cut into slices.) Put the beetroot in a pot with plenty of boiling water and simmer for three to five minutes, until semi-cooked; it should still be crunchy. Drain and put in a large bowl.

Add the red onion, vinegar, oil, sugar, chilli sauce, salt and pepper to the beetroot bowl and toss everything together gently – your hands are the best tool for this. Leave to one side for 10-15 minutes, then taste and see if you want to add more sugar, salt or vinegar – it needs to be sharp and sweetish.
When you're ready to serve, spread half the beetroot mixture on a large platter or in a shallow bowl. Top with half the avocado, coriander, mint, pea shoots and broad beans. Add the rest of the beetroot and arrange the remaining ingredients on top. Drizzle with a little oil and serve.  He also suggests adding hazelnuts and goats' cheese slices to the top - which I would definitely do.

What to have with this?  Lovely on it's own - probably add some nice bread and follow with something substantial like a plum crumble and vanilla ice-cream.