BABY BEET RECIPE

Warm Beet and Greens Salad


bunch of baby beets,
half a red onion,
2-3 cloves of garlic,
1 bunch beet greens,
1 cup cooked garbanzo beans
Wrap beets in foil and place on a baking sheet in the middle of the oven and roast at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes. Take the beets out of the oven to cool in the foil for a while. Keeping them in the foil will help loosen the skin. When cold enough to handle, remove the skin. Sauté the onion and garlic on medium heat in good olive oil for about five minutes. Add roughly chopped greens and cook 5-10 minutes. Add the garbanzo beans and beets and heat for a few minutes.

Baby BEETS

Baby beets are just beets picked early.

Many recipes recommend roasting beets in the oven to bring out their sweetness.  Roasting recipes vary.  I like roasting beets in tin foil on 375 for 45 minutes or until desired tenderness.  After cooling, you can rub the skins off easy or don’t rub them off at all.

Another quick and easy cooking method for these babies is boiling them.  Skins rub off easy after cooling.

Beet and Carrot Veggie Burgers

1/2 cup sesame seeds
1 cup sunflower seeds
2 cups peeled grated beets (1-2 medium beets)
2 cups grated carrots (about 4 carrots)
1/2 cup minced onion (about 1 medium onion)
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup cooked brown rice
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup finely chopped parsley
3 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari
1 clove garlic, minced
1/8-1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Butter or oil for greasing the baking sheet.

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Lightly grease a baking sheet.
2. Place a small, heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the sesame seeds and stir them on the dry skillet just until lightly browned and fragrant, 3 to 5 minutes, watching closely to avoid burning them. Immediately remove from heat and transfer the toasted seeds to a dish to cool.
3. Return the skillet to the heat. Add the sunflower seeds and stir them on the dry skillet just until lightly browned and fragrant, 3 to 5 minutes, watching closely to avoid burning them. Immediately transfer them to the dish with the sesame seeds.
4. Combine the beets, carrots, and onion in a large bowl. Stir in the toasted sunflower and sesame seeds, eggs, rice, cheddar cheese, oil, flour, parsley, soy sauce or tamari, and garlic. Add cayenne and mix until thoroughly combined.
5. Using your hands, shape the mixture into 12 patties and arrange them in rows on the baking sheet.
6. Bake the patties until brown around the edges, about 20 minutes. Unless they are very large and thick, it should not be necessary to flip them.
Makes 12 patties.

Roasted Beets with Cumin and Mint

From Epicurious.com

1 T fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon cumin seeds, toasted and lightly crushed
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
2 T extra-virgin olive oil
3 medium beets, trimmed, leaving 1 inch of stems attached
1/3 cup fresh mint, coarsely chopped

Stir together lemon juice, cumin seeds, salt and pepper in a medium bowl.  Stir in oil and let stand while roasting beets.

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 425 degrees. 

Tightly wrap beets in a double layer of foil and roast on a baking sheet until tender, 1 to 1 ¼ hours.  Cool to warm in foil, about 20 minutes.

When beets are cool enough to handle, peel them, discarding stems and root ends, then cut into ½-inch-wide wedges.

Toss warm beets with dressing.  Stir in mint just before serving. 

Orange-Ginger Beets

From Miriam B. Loo’s out-of-print but awesome Fresh from the Garden Cookbook. 
This recipe seems a bit old-fashioned because of the use of cornstarch.

3 medium-sized beets, cooked
1 teaspoon grated orange rind
¾ cup orange juice
1 teaspoon lemon juice
 1 T cornstarch
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger or ½ teaspoon ground ginger
Salt and pepper to taste
1 T butter
Grated orange rind for garnish

Cut cooked beets in julienne strips (narrow, 2-inch long strips); set aside.  In small bowl, mix orange rind and juice, lemon juice, cornstarch, sugar, ginger, salt and pepper.  Melt butter in saucepan; add orange juice mixture.  Stir over medium heat until mixture boils; reduce heat.  Add beets and return to boil again.  Remove and serve with sprinkling of grated orange rind for an extra touch.

Beet-Onion Medley

1 T butter
3 medium beets, cooked and cubed
¼ cup cranberry juice or beet juice
1 cup finely chopped onions
¼ cup sliced clery
Slat and pepper to taste
1 T minced fresh parsley or ½ T dried
½ teaspoon dried oregano
In skillet or saucepan, melt butter; add beets, juice, onions and celery.  Cook covered for 12 minutes or until vegetables are tender.  Season with salt and pepper.  Just before serving, sprinkle with a mixture of minced parsley and oregano.

Beets a la Crème

¼ cup butter
8 beets, cooked
Salt to taste
1 cup heavy cream
Freshly ground pepper to taste
 3 T minced fresh parsley or 2 T dried

Cut beets in thick strips, cube or slice as you prefer.  In a large skillet, melt butter.  Add beets and sauté for 2 minutes, stirring to coat beets evenly with butter. Season with salt; add cream and continue to cook until reduced to glaze just coating beets.  Sprinkle heavily with pepper and parlsey.

Meagan’s Beet Salad from the Potluck 

5 beets, cut and roasted
20 oz of plain yogurt
1 small package of walnuts
2-3 handfuls cilantro, chopped
2 serrano peppers, finely diced
salt and pepper to taste
A few drizzles of honey

Mix, chill, eat.

Version:  You can also just add diced beets to softened cream cheese for a yummy spread.  Add hot peppers, too, and/or chives and/or onions.

I made the beet spread with cream cheese, diced/smashed roasted beets, onion.

It's good with chives and/or hot peppers, too! Side of cheeseburger and cucumber salad

Oregon Hash

• Brown an onion and mushrooms (half pound)

• Chop 1 – 2 bunches of kale

• Add kale to pan and wilt (4 – 5 min)

• Add one large beet

• Top with crumbled blue cheese or parmesan at serving time

• Top with toasted chopped walnuts or hazelnuts