Saturday, June 12, 2010

Roasted Beets with Feta

Before Katie and I joined the CSA a few years ago, I had never eaten beets. There were definitely other items that were a first for me that summer, but beets stand out just because they don't seem very appetizing to me. I know many people love beets, and I mean no offense, but they just don't look like they'd be any good. But I'm game for trying new things, and I can't stand for anything to go to waste, so we did our best to eat our beets. This is the recipe that we use for our beets.

Ingredients


* 4 beets, trimmed, leaving 1 inch of stems attached
* 1/4 cup minced shallot
* 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
* 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
* 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
* 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
* salt and pepper to taste
* 1/4 to 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Wrap each beet individually in aluminum foil, and place onto a baking sheet.
2. Bake beets in preheated oven until easily pierced with a fork, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Once done, remove from oven, and allow to cool until you can handle them. Peel beets, and cut into 1/4 inch slices.
3. While the beets are roasting, whisk together shallot, parsley, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and red wine vinegar in a bowl until blended; season to taste with salt and pepper, and set aside.
4. To assemble the dish, place the warm, sliced beets onto a serving dish, pour vinaigrette over the beets, and sprinkle with feta cheese before serving.



I can't say that I now love beets, and I don't really ever crave them, but they're pretty good every once in a while. How do you like your beets?

1 comment:

  1. The May/June 2010 edition of the "Vegetarian Times" magazine had an entire feature on beets. It included recipes for pancakes (similar to a potato pancake), brownies, and slaws/salads. I made the following featured recipe.

    Firecracker Beet Slaw

    3 Raw Beets (peeled and shredded)
    1 Granny Smith Apple (shredded)
    4 Green Onions (thinly sliced)
    1/3 cup Apple Cider Vinegar
    3 Tbs. Olive Oil
    2 Tbs. Dijon Mustard
    1 Tbs. Agave Nectaar or 2 Tbs. Sugar
    2 Cloves Garlic (or 2 tsp. minced garlic)
    1 tsp. minced canned chipotle chile in adobo sauce (I used sriracha instead)
    1/2 tsp. salt

    Directions: Toss together beets, apple, and green onions in bowl. Blend vinegar, oil, mustard, agave/sugar, garlic, chipotle chile/sriracha, and salt in food processor until smooth. Add to beet mixture and toss to coat. Note: I used a mandolin to shred the beets and apple.

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