Fiber Fool

I generally consider myself pretty well versed in the consumption of veggies. I’m not a picky eater and haven’t really found many vegetables I won’t eat as long as they are prepared properly. Growing up I occasionally had pickled beets, but I do not recall ever eating them in any other form and definitely do not think my mom ever cooked with beets. So, when beets arrived in our CSA share it was off to Google I went in search of something other than pickling to do with them.

Naturally many of the recipes I saw involved roasting the beets. I figured that was pretty much a given. The post-roasting process almost universally called for some form of Dijon or mustard vinaigrette. They were also almost always served along side some meat. DH dislikes mustard. Really dislikes it. Hate might not even be going too far. So that dressing was not an option. Add to it vegetarian cooking and I was a tad stymied. I’ve always struggled with serving sides as part of a vegetarian meal. My mid-western farm upbringing just has my brain thinking in meat and potatoes mode and I can’t wrap my head around serving vegetables with vegetables. That is one my biggest stumbling blocks of cooking vegetarian. It seems like something needs to be the “main dish” and aside from uninspired grilled portobello mushrooms I was stuck on what to serve along side the beets.

I let these recipes I had found but couldn’t make swirl around in my head for a few days. Fortunately beets keep quite well, especially when still attached to their greens. Eventually inspiration struck and I got to use an additional week’s worth of CSA beets to make it (plus set aside a little of the roasted goodness to use in another fashion). While I found this to be a perfectly satisfying meal by itself, Drew would prefer it in the future as a side. It was a bit too much beet for him but he has already said I need to make it again, so that is still high praise. Given that warm reception I thought I’d share it as I’m sure we are not the last ones to get beets either from a CSA or your own garden.

Ingredients:

• ~1-1.5 lbs Beets with Greens, roots quartered and greens washed and dried
• 1 Lg Yellow Onion, cut into large wedges to match beets
• 4 Tbls Olive Oil, divided
• Salt & Black Pepper to Taste
• 2-3 Lg Cloves Garlic, lightly smashed
• 1 C Split Green Lentils with Skin (Masoor Dal)
• 3 C Water
• 4 oz Gorgonzola Cheese, crumbled
• 4 oz Walnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped if desired

For Dressing:

• 1/4 C Olive Oil
• 1/2 C Balsamic Vinegar
• 2 T Honey
• 2 Scallions, sliced thin
• 2 lg Cloves Garlic, minced
• Salt & Pepper to Taste

Directions:

1. Toss quartered beets and wedged onion together with 2 T of olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Place in a baking dish, cover and roast at 400 deg F for 45 minutes or until a fork easily passes through largest beet.

2. Meanwhile, sort through lentils looking for rocks or foreign matter. I put 1/4 cup at a time on a white dinner plate and run my hands over the top. It is often easier to feel the tiny stones than see them. Then rinse the lentils 2-4 times, until drained water runs nearly clear. Add the 3 cups of water to the rinsed lentils in a medium sauce and bring to a boil uncovered over medium heat. Once the lentils are boiling, skim off any foam, cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes. I find at our altitude I generally need to cook them 20 minutes. When done, turn off heat and leave covered until needed.

3. Peel and lightly smash 2-3 cloves of garlic. Place in a cold saute pan with 2 T olive oil and turn burner onto medium low heat. Let the garlic slowly infuse the oil and gently caramelize slightly.

4. Wash the beet greens by swishing them gently in a sink full of cool water, then let them float for several minutes allowing any sand or dirt particles to fall to the bottom of the sink. Disturbing the water as little as possible, remove the greens. Repeat until little dirt remains at the bottom of the sink and spin dry. Remove stems and rough chop leaves.

5. Whisk together the dressing ingredients in a large bowl.

6. When done roasting, cut up the beets and onions into bite size pieces.

7. Remove garlic from the saute pan and chop slightly. Then saute the washed and dried beet greens in the garlic infused olive oil 3-5 minutes or until wilted.

8. Add lentils, roasted beets and onions, cooked garlic and sauteed beet greens to the balsamic dressing and toss to coat well.

9. Top each serving with crumbled Gorgonzola cheese and toasted walnuts.

I also found the leftovers are quite satisfying cold, served atop some fresh greens and again topped with Gorgonzola and walnuts plus a pinch of fresh cracked pepper and some kosher salt. Also, if your beets no longer have the greens attached you can use spinach or kale in their place.