. . .Nothing Beats a Beet. . .

As A Foodie, in my perfect vegetable world. . .Nothing Beats a Beet!  The entire plant is not only edible, but when done right it's really tasty and healthy.  The greens, when perfectly steamed are heavenly, a bit like spinach, but with more body and character.  The stems are also great when chopped and steamed for 5 minutes before adding those luscious greens.  The root, well, what can I say. . .it tastes like dirt, in THE best possible, healthiest, 'doing our bodies good' kinda way.  So beets. . .yeah, I love 'em!

I was going through some photos the other day, from several years ago when an old friend visited me.  We had lunch atop the Raddison Hotel in their rotating-see-the-city restaurant.  I remember the salad well, after seeing it in this picture.  Right down to how delicious it was, but the dressing was just a touch off. Speaking strictly for me, it goes like this:

Beet Salad + Raspberry Vinaigrette = Perfection!

So many times I've heard different Chefs say, "Red onion is the mildest of onions - they're perfect in a salad." Wrong! On two counts. First, it's not 'red,' it's a Purple Onion, (just like cute little red-haired children do not have 'red' hair, it's orange!) Second they are not the mildest of onions.  In fact, at the risk of just sounding ornery, in my onion, they're the strongest.  Not good raw in salads, but great for quartering, tossing in seasoned EVOO and slow roasting. Or in a slow-simmered dinner with rough cut vegetables and huge chunks of meat.

So today, when a salad was sounding good, I decided to recreate that one. 

Spinach, beets, mung beans I sprouted, julienne carrot strips, shallot slices, walnuts, feta cheese and a great Raspberry Vinaigrette.

With a big glass of this great drink - it was perfect. . .Lin

Strawberry Spinach Salad with Quinoa (millet and buckwheat)

I was putting together my Quarantine-Florentine Meatloaf, and kept looking at that pile of leftover spinach leaves.  Hmm, I have a really good mix of nuts, I have strawberries, green onion, even feta cheese.  And bacon!  And a balsamic vinaigrette I made a while ago... Okay, when the meatloaf is put together and baking, I'm gonna make a BIG salad.

a BIG handful of fresh spinach

4 big ripe strawberries and tops

2 very large green onions

¼c quinoa--mine was a quinoa-buckwheat-millet mix

½c+ water for cooking it

½c chopped mixed nuts--mine were macadamias, cashews and walnuts

for even more crunch, you could add sliced celery hearts or chopped water chestnuts

Slice or chop all the fresh ingredients into a big, BIG bowl.  I saw something on a cooking show or read an article by a chef recently - can't remember which - where it was mentioned we should be eating strawberry greens.  That they're like a little mini fruit salad that way.  Okay, I'm game!  Rinse the quinoa, then combine it with the water in a little pan, bring to a boil, cover and simmer on low until you hear that the water is gone. Add another drizzle of water, along with the chopped nuts, stir, cover and remove from the heat for another 5 minutes.  Combine in the big bowl with the fresh ingredients, toss, dress, top with crumbled bacon, feta cheese and some good black pepper to wake it all up!  Mmmm!  Salad!  I ate half of this, then later came back for the rest.  It seemed to need more acid and fruit.  I grated in some orange peel and cut up a CaraCara orange into what was left. Perfect! . . .Lin

Beets Greens and Grains with Feta

a bunch of beets and their greens

¾ chopped walnuts

1-2T butter

1c of quinoa blend*

2c cold filtered water

2±T BTB soup base in cooking water

1 lg. leek - sliced

crumbled feta cheese

Pick a bunch of healthy looking beets with good tops.  Cut off the tops, at the base of the stems, set aside the stems and tops.  Scrub the beets, don't peel them, but cut off any bad areas.  Slice and wash the greens and stems in your salad spinner.  (You do have one right?  If not I recommend the Progressive brand spinner sold for under $10 at Walmart - excellent!)  

In a 2-3 quart pot, dry toast the walnuts.  When their nutty scent is released and they're lightly browned, remove from the heat.  After this cools just a bit, add the grains and butter.  *I decided against the sorghum in the original picture and used the quinoa, millet and buckwheat shown here.  Stir this together, turn on the heat and add water, a little at a time for a few minutes.  Add the remaining water and soup base.  Cook this about 8 minutes before adding the leek slices.  Simmer over low heat until all the water is absorbed.

Okay, back to the beets!  While the grains are simmering, cut the beets into ½" cubes and simmer, in a little water, in a covered pan, until they start to soften.  Add the chopped-sliced stems and greens and simmer, covered.  When the beets and stems are tender, drain the liquid.  (Use this later for a dark soup base, or give it to your dogs with their dry food!)

Combine the beets, greens and the grain mixture in a casserole dish.  Top with crumbled feta cheese.  Cover until the cheese melts a bit.  This is a great vegetarian main dish, or as a side to meat, chicken or fish.  

Remember, food that goes down red, often comes out red!

This is caused by betanin, in purple-red beets  which is similar to the beta carotene, responsible for the orange color in carrots.  If this happens. . .don't be alarmed. 😉 Lin

Zucchini-Potatoes

2 med. zucchini
2T minced garlic
2T coconut oil
1/2 onion - chopped
1 lg. potato - cubed
1 14.5oz. can diced tomatoes
sea salt, cayenne and black pepper
feta cheese - cubed or crumbled

Slice the zucchini into quarters, lengthwise, then chop.  Saute' zucchini and garlic in coconut oil until nicely browned.  Add remaining ingredients, except cheese.  Cover and simmer until potatoes are done the way you like them.  Check seasonings and adjust if necessary.  Top with cheese and serve as a vegetarian main or side dish. . .Lin