Give Beets a Chance

A lot of people don't like beets.  I think it's mainly a textural issue.  I just last night thanked my parents for not forcing me to eat such "controversial" vegetables when I was a kid, preventing me from harboring any aversions toward things like beets or Brussel sprouts.  (They did, however, force me to eat peas, which resulted in about a decade-long hiatus until I rediscovered them in dishes like chicken pot pie, shepherd's pie, and pasta with peas and pancetta in a pepper cream sauce.  MMM.)

I'm here to plead with you adults who have sworn off beets to give them another try.  I'm not talking canned beets, '70s-style - I'm talking the crisp, earthy root vegetables that arrive with their stems still intact.  They require a bit more patience and innovation than most (even simply roasting them takes about an hour, and you can kiss your crisp-white cutting boards goodbye), but they're absolutely worth it when done right.  They also provide a lot of nutritional bang for their caloric buck - one serving has only 45 calories yet provides 27% of the daily value of folate, as well as a significant amount of Vitamin C, iron, manganese, magnesium, and "glycine betaine," a blood cleanser.  Not bad, eh?

Nutrition aside, beets are beautiful and delicious when not overcooked.  I'm going to highlight here two ways I've prepared them that have turned out quite well.  The first - Glazed Baby Beet and Carrot Salad with Cumin Dressing by Grace Parisi at Food & Wine - is super fast, easy, and exquisitely flavored.  I'd recommend this dish for those with textural fears, as the vegetables remain quite crunchy.  My father, who was forced to eat soggy canned beets as a child, tried them last night and actually loved them.  I kept things super simple and didn't even bother with the lettuce, feta, and almonds, and it still made for a beautiful side dish.  Simply follow the link above and enjoy!

The second method is a bit more laborious.  Okay, so laborious that a) I probably would have given up had Bethye not been there to (literally) lend a hand, and b) I don't know that I'll ever do it again.  HOWEVER, the recipe makes so much that I still have an entire gallon Ziplock-bag-full in the freezer that I'm sure will be much more enjoyable when I can just plunge them right in the water one day and enjoy a few minutes later.

I'm talking about beet and ricotta gnocchi.

Yes, making gnocchi is a massive pain in the ass.  The finished product is delicious, though (well, the beet gnocchi were great - the sweet potato gnocchi left a bit to be desired), and there's a bit of pride to be had in making it out alive.  I highly recommend having someone else on hand to help out when you're elbow-deep in the stickiest fuschia mess imaginable, preferably someone who's an excellent baker (again, thank you, Bethye).

Another tip is to roast and mash the beets the day before.  That way, the process the day of is a bit quicker and easier.  Good luck!

BEET AND RICOTTA GNOCCHI (adapted from Eat a Beet)

(original photo)

3 small beets, trimmed 

16 oz. fresh ricotta cheese 

1 large egg 

3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese 

salt and pepper to taste 

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour, divided 

Preheat the oven to 450˚. Wrap the beets in foil and roast until tender, about 1 hour.  Let cool for 15 minutes before removing the skins.  Grate coarsely or mash with a potato masher.  This part can be done the day before. 

Into a food processor, add the beets (about a cup’s worth), ricotta, egg, Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, and 1 cup flour.  Again, this part can be done ahead and kept in the refrigerator until ready for assembly. 

Lightly dust a baking sheet with flour.  Place the remaining 1/2 cup of flour in small bowl.  Measure out tablespoon-sized scoops of dough, plop into the bowl of flower, and coat.  Shake off the excess, and roll with a gnocchi board or a fork to get the traditional indentations.  (Bethye and I had a tough time with this part, so we just plopped the floured balls onto the baking sheet and pressed them gently with the tines of a fork.  Imitation gnocchi!) 

Yet again, the recipe can be prepared to this point up to 6 hours ahead.  Just cover and chill in the meantime.  Alternatively, place the baking sheet in the freezer until the individual gnocchi are hard, then dump into a Ziplock bag and freeze. 

Put a large, well-salted pot of water on to boil.  Cook the gnocchi until they float to the surface, about 2 minutes.  Cook about another minute, then remove with a slotted spoon. 

Place the gnocchi on plate and sauce appropriately (I made a brown butter sage sauce, which in retrospect was maybe a bit too rich).  Serve immediately, sprinkled with additional Parmesan cheese. 

If after trying both of these recipes you still hate beets, then maybe you should just try using them as dye.  They were certainly effective on my cutting board. 

- M