Vibrant Beet Soup with Beet Greens

So, I’m on a bit of a beet kick. Who isn’t at this time of year? This soup, adapted from Vegetable Soups by my favorite chef, Deborah Madison, uses not only the beets and their greens, but also their stems to make the stock. The bold jewel tone of the soup is breathtaking, but take care to wear a black shirt when eating this!

Goat Cheese & Beet Greens Crostini with a Salad of Roasted Beets & Frisée

Having a dinner party anytime soon?  Impress your eco-minded guests with this “green” appetizer from The Big Sur Bakery Cookbook: A Year In The Life of a Restaurant.  Not only does it utilize the beets, but also their uber-nutritious greens.  The greens cook down and are soft and mild – don’t be afraid!  Its presentation, with the beets bleeding vibrantly onto the frisée, along with the variety of colors and textures, is pleasing to the eye.

Goat Cheese & Beet Greens Crostini with a Salad of Roasted Beets & Frisée
Serves 4

Beets & Beet Greens
3 bunches of small beets (9-12 beets) with greens attached
fine-grain sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
5 garlic cloves, minced
large pinch of red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon + 1/2 teaspoon red wine vinegar

Goat Cheese Crostini
4-7 1/2″ thick slices of a baguette, depending on how thick it is
extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
1-2 tablespoons flat-leaf parsley, minced
fine-grain sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
2 ounces crumbled goat cheese

Salad
1 head frisée, dark green tops snipped down to leave only the white and yellow parts, core chopped off, and leaves torn into medium pieces
2-3 tablespoons chives, snipped
fine-grain sea salt
freshly ground black pepper

1.) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut stems off the beets, leaving about 1″ on the beets, as this keeps them moist during roasting. Remove beet greens from the stems, wash thoroughly, shake dry and roughly chop. You will have approximately 2 cups. Set aside. Scrub beets thoroughly, but take care not to rub off their skins. Place in a roasting pan with about 1/2 cup water. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and toss to coat. Cover with aluminum foil and roast until a knife slides easily through beets; 45 minutes to 1 1/2 hours; depending on their size. Some may be done before others. When tender, remove to a plate using tongs and set aside to cool. Leave oven on.

2.) Prepare the beet greens while to beets are roasting. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add onion and cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add garlic and red pepper flakes and cook for 5 minutes more; until onions are beginning to brown. Add beet greens, season with salt and pepper, and cook until tender and vastly reduced in size; 7-10 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in 1/2 teaspoon red wine vinegar; more to taste if you’d like. Set aside.

3.) When the beets are cooled, use your fingers or a dark-colored towel to rub off their skins and the stems. Do this over a sink, as it can get quite messy! Chop off the rough bottom and top parts of the beets, and cut the beets into quarters. In a medium-sized serving bowl, toss beets with 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar and 1 tablespoon olive oil; more, if necessary. Set aside.

4.) Prepare the crostini. Generously brush both sides with olive oil. Spread parsley on one side, and season with salt and pepper. Move to a baking sheet and toast in the oven until the crust is firm and the bread is lightly toasted; 6-10 minutes. Remove and divide beet green mixture evenly amongst the crostini. Top with goat cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside until ready to serve. When you are ready to serve, heat in the oven for 7 minutes or so; until goat cheese is warmed but not melting.

5.) Prepare the salad. Reheat beets in saute pan over medium-high heat until warmed through; 4-6 minutes. Toss beets and frisée in serving bowl. Sprinkle with chives. Check for seasoning; adding more vinegar, salt, and pepper, if salad needs a bit more pizzaz. Serve immediately with the warmed crostini on a platter.

This recipe was adapted from The Big Sur Bakery Cookbook: A Year In The Life of a Restaurant by Michelle and Philip Wojtowicz and Michael Gilson with Catherine Price. Published by HarperCollins Publishers; 2009.

Caramelized Beets with Caraway & Walnuts

Denis Cotter’s Wild Garlic, Gooseberries… and Me is my cookbook of the moment – gorgeous! Cotter’s inspired photography and deliciously seasonal recipes focus on the salt of the earth – vibrant, fresh vegetables. I recently made his recipe for “Caramelized Beets with Caraway & Walnuts” due to this year’s newly acquired obsession with beets. I just can’t get enough of them. If you love beets (or even just like them, as this recipe will surely convert you), this recipe will be one you turn to time and time again.

The dried-up red roses just so happened to be sitting on the kitchen counter when I made the beets – souvenirs from Valentine’s Day that I am reluctant to get rid of, no matter how big of a mess their falling leaves and petals are making! I was struck by how similar their bewitching color was to the beets…

Caramelized Beets with Caraway & Walnuts

1 bunch of red beets (1 1/2-2 pounds)
2 1/2 teaspoons ground Dutch caraway
2 1/2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 1/2 tablespoons raw cane sugar
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/3 cup toasted walnuts, quartered (I buy Trader Joe’s “Walnut Pieces” for pennies)

1.) Cut beet greens, if any, down to two inches long. Leaving a few inches of stems will prevent the beets from drying out during roasting. Scrub beets under cool running water, taking care to rinse around the stem. Preheat oven to 330 degrees.

2.) Bring a large pot of fresh, cool water to a boil. Boil beets for 20 minutes. When cool, scrub off skins with your fingers – they slide right off. If you have a stubborn spot, use a vegetable peeler. Slice beets thinly (1/4 inch will do) and place in glass baking dish. Toss with the caraway, oil, vinegar, and sugar. Add enough water to reach all of the beets. Loosely cover with parchment paper and bake for an hour.

3.) When beets are starting to look glossy, the liquid has mostly evaporated, and the beets are starting to caramelize, remove from oven, toss with the walnuts, and serve.

This recipe was adapted from Denis Cotter’s Wild Garlic, Gooseberries… and Me. Copyright 2007. HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.

Roasted Beets with Toasted Walnuts

Beets are a recent discovery of mine (don’t laugh, mmk?  Pity me!)  At 21, and fully ensconced in a life revolving around food, I figured it was time to finally give these suckers a shot.  I had my first beet in October, and shall I say I now know the full meaning of “beet red?!”  My fingers are perpetually stained with their unruly juices.  So, please, wear black when you’re roasting beets, mmk?

I had some toasted walnuts on hand, left over from a batch of Heidi’s Red Quinoa Walnut cookies.  After roasting the beets in the oven with some balsamic vinegar, I chopped up the walnuts, splashed the beets with some walnut oil, and promptly entered a state of foodie bliss.

Roasted Beets with Toasted Walnuts

1 bunch of beets (about 3 medium), scrubbed and greens cut to 2″ length
1/4-1/2 cup chopped deeply toasted walnuts
1-2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
splash of walnut oil

1.) Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place cleaned beets on a sheet of tin foil. Splash beets with a healthy coating of balsamic vinegar and a few tablespoons of water.

2.) Wrap the beets up tightly in the tin foil, place in a baking dish, and roast for 1 hour; until fork tender.

3.) Remove from oven, cut off their tops, and allow beets to cool until you can comfortably handle them. Then scrap off their beautiful skins skins, using a peeler to eradicate any stubborn bits. (This part is MESSY, so maybe even use gloves if you have a mani).

4.) Splash with a bit of walnut oil and then sprinkle with the walnuts. Serve.