• This peppered roast beef with beetroot granita pairs well the sweet spicy fruit of a shiraz such as Zandvliet Kalkveld Shiraz or Graham Beck Shiraz-Viognier or a pinotage like Diemersfontein.

    Peppered roast beef with beetroot granita

    Serves: 4
    Cooking Time: 30 mins plus extra for setting

    Ingredients

    • BEETROOT GRANITA

    • 6 medium-sized cooked beetroots, to yield
    • 250ml beetroot purée
    • 250ml water
    • juice and zest of 1 lemon
    • salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
    • BEEF

    • 500g beef fillet
    • 30ml olive oil
    • 50ml freshly ground black pepper
    • salt, to taste
    • mixed baby leaves, to serve

    Instructions

    1

    To make the granita, purée the cooked beetroot in a food processor. Add the water, lemon juice and zest to the purée, and season. Pour the mixture into a flat container and freeze until solid.

    2

    Rub the fillet with the olive oil, black pepper and salt. Heat a griddle pan until smoking hot and sear the fillet on all sides until golden brown on the outside, about 2 minutes. Leave to rest for 5 minutes before slicing the roast beef into thin slices.

    3

    Remove the granita from the freezer. Using a fork, scrape the surface of the mixture until fine ice crystals form. Serve the roast beef immediately with the mixed leaves and a generous helping of beetroot granita.