I don’t know what happened but my beet crop was disastrous this year. The “golden” beets I planted in the fall evolved into knotty, dingy beige, woody and inedible roots. Thank goodness my neighbor, Sandy, who is an amazing gardener, gifted me with three beautiful ruby beets as well as the challenge of how to cook them other than the classic steamed or roasted. I immediately thought of my brand new spiralizer that I purchased from my dear friend Laureen who is a director at Pampered Chef. Her products are always top-notch but for some reason, I had procrastinated experimenting with this contraption.
My garden re-landscape has consumed my life ( I just had to have a Fuyu Persimmon!) and I decided to take a break from the dirt to spend a day in the kitchen, my other favorite room. I started the morning baking David Lebovitz’s olive oil muffins, with my touch of added blueberries, then decided to tackle the spiralizer. It is much easier than anticipated! In fact, it is simple. I choose the fettuccine blade and voila! I was impressed. From the outside, all Sandy’s beets looked the same but when unwrapping them, one’s color was a burgundy wine while the other a party pink.
I wanted to create something simple but tasty and beautiful. The accompanying ingredient that came to mind was pistachios. I love this green nut which I feel is so undervalued.
Once the beets are thinly sliced, they can be eaten either raw or cooked. I blanched some of the spirals and was disappointed that the brightness of color faded dramatically. I decided to use them raw but you can prepare them anyway you like.
My choice of flavoring was extra virgin mint olive oil, which I tossed into the beets to give them a light, summer flavor. Goat cheese, rolled in the mint olive oil then in chopped pistachios, added character. The cubed avocado provides extra color and a soft texture. I sprinkled around some leftover fennel for color and crunch. For the finale, thick fig balsamic vinegar was drizzled on top. This vinegar really does pair beautifully with the beets. The fun is in “painting” the plate with your ingredients. Feel free to share your beet creations and combos with me!
Ciao for now!
Mary