Beets

I was looking back at some old posts and realized that I never documented how things went with introducing new veggies to the household. I had worked on four recipes for the following vegetables:

Cabbage
Artichokes
Beets
Parsnips
Turnips
Rutabagas

The verdict? Two successes, one with potential, and one failure. Not bad. I really didn't have my hopes too high so I was pleased.

The big winner of the weekend, at least for me, were the beets! Absolutely delicious. My mom liked them, the Peanut loves them, and I can't get enough of them. The Hubs had a work dinner that night and hasn't tried them yet (I'm sure he's losing sleep over that one), and I haven't been able to get The Music Man to try them either.

Before I talk about how I prepared them, let me give you some nutritional background on the glorious beet:

Beets date back to the Middle Ages and are rich in calcium, iron, magnesium and phosphorous. They also have plenty of carotene, B complex and Vitamin C. I'm attracted to them for the minerals. The more I read, the more I realize how much of our population is deficient in iron and magnesium. These are tough minerals to find in foods, and food is how you will absorb them the best. The beet is an all-star because it is so heavily concentrated with this good stuff, so much so that a lot of natural vitamins and supplements are derived from them. And all of these healthy minerals and vitamins are in the leaf tops as well, so be sure to buy them whole to get the most from this amazing superfood! My beginning goal is to have beets at least twice a month, but I want to eventually get to a place where I cook them once a week and use them sporadically throughout the week.

I looked to my book Nourishing Traditions for a starting point in preparation.  I also went online for some cooking tips and this is what I ended up doing:

Take the beet and slice off the green leaves on the ends. Save them because you will wilt them later and toss them with the beets. I chopped off the hearty stalk and just saved the leaves but I actually think the stalks are probably good for you.

Chop off the long stems at the other end of the beet and discard. Then wash them pretty good. But don't go crazy because you'll peel off the skin anyway.

Drizzle olive oil over the beets and then wrap them up in aluminum foil. Place them on a baking sheet. This is for easy clean up. Beet juice stains and everything you use while preparing them (your knife, the baking sheet, the fork you use to pierce them) will get nice and red-purply. 

Roast them in the oven.

Now time and temperature will vary. Food is best slow-cooked but sometimes you don't have the time for that. Sally Fallon suggests 2 hours in a 250 degree oven. I did 350 degrees and it took a little over an hour. When you can pierce them easily with a fork they are done. And like most root vegetables, the softer they feel when pierced, the more tender and delicious they will be.

Once done, use a fork or spoon and just push the skin off of them. It will slide right off. Slice up the beets and then sautee them with their greens, garlic, and some butter. Add salt and pepper to taste and you've got one great side dish!

Use the left-over beets in a salad. They taste great cold or warm. My Peanut eats them for breakfast with her egg yolk and some avocado.