Just Beet It!

Beets are one of my all-time favorite vegetables. I love that they come in beautiful, bright colors, taste sweet and delicious, and are very, very good for you. Both the greens and the root are loaded with antioxidants that cleanse the body of toxins, a characteristic in vegetables that I find totally awesome. They are also rich in folic acid, iron, potassium, and calcium and are also known to cure the body of many different ailments. So these lovely root vegetables not only taste totally delicious, but they make you feel good too. Now how can you beet that?!

Beets are a great winter vegetable, so lately I have been experimenting with them in the kitchen. Here are a few of my recent creations:

Beet and Arugula Panzanella

Panzanella is an Italian bread salad made with tomatoes and basil, and seasoned with a vinegar and olive oil dressing. Here, I replaced the tomatoes with beets and the basil with arugula and added crunchy sunflowers seeds and red onion. It was absolutely delish!

1. Preheat oven to 400 F. Wrap about 1 pound of medium beets in foil. Place the foil-wrapped beets in a baking dish and roast for about 1 hour, or until tender when poked with a knife. Cool until easy to handle, then peel the outer layer off by scraping the beets with a spoon. Dice the peeled beets. (Or, skip this step and purchase two 15-ounce cans of diced beets. Just drain them and they're ready to use.)

2. Meanwhile make the vinaigrette and toast the bread: In a large skillet, heat 1/4 cup olive oil on medium-high heat. Add about 4 cups diced day-old bread (I used my homemade garlic focaccia, which was delicious). Cook the bread in the oil, stirring often, until evenly browned; remove from heat and season with salt and freshly cracked black pepper. 

3. For the vinaigrette, in a large bowl, whisk together 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar, 1 tablespoon olive oil, about 2 teaspoons honey, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, and 1/4 cup sunflower seeds (I use roasted and salted ones). Add the diced beets, the toasted bread, a few big handfuls of prewashed baby arugula, and about one-quarter of a red onion, thinly sliced. Toss to coat with the dressing.

Roasted Golden Beets and Radicchio

The bitter, slightly spicy flavor of radicchio meshes beautifully with sweet beets. Red onion adds another lovely layer of flavor.

1. Preheat oven to 400 F. Wrap about 1 pound of medium golden beets in foil. Place the foil-wrapped beets in a large baking dish and roast for about an hour, or until tender when poked with a knife. Cool until easy to handle, then peel by scraping the beets with a spoon. Cut into wedges and return to the baking dish. Add 1 small head of radicchio (cut into wedges) and 1 red onion (cut into wedges). Drizzle with about 3 tablespoons olive oil, 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, a good squeeze of honey (to taste), and a dash each of salt and black pepper; toss to coat.

2. Return to the oven and roast for about 10 to 15 minutes, or until the radicchio is wilted and tender. Season with sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste.

Beet Greens and Swiss on Toast

This was a spur-of-the-moment invention that turned out utterly magnificent!

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. On a large baking sheet, place about twelve 1/2-inch slices of baguette. Toast in the oven until tops are dry, about 5 minutes. Flip each bread piece over and 

return to the oven for 5 more minutes. 

2. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat about 1/4 cup olive oil over medium heat. Add 2 cloves garlic (minced) and a big pinch of crushed red pepper. Cook and stir for 30 seconds. Gradually (and carefully—the oil may spatter a bit) add 6 to 8 cups of torn beet greens (or swiss chard). Cook for about 5 minutes, or until the greens are totally wilted but still bright in color. Remove from heat; season to taste with sea salt and black pepper.

3. Using kitchen tongs, distribute the greens evenly among the 12 toasted bread slices. Drizzle the olive oil that remains in the skillet overtop the greens-topped toasts. Place a generous slice of swiss or gruyere cheese over the greens on each piece of toast. Return to the oven for about 8 to 10 minutes, or until the cheese is totally melted. Top with a bit of sweet paprika.