So what do I do with these beets?

[politicat]

They're arriving tomorrow in the vegetable box. All I've ever had were those nasty, pickled vinegary things that stain everything and some Russian thing that pretended to be food. (Like Scottish cuisine, there's a lot of Russian cuisine that seems to be based on a dare.)

I know I use the tops like Swiss Chard, and we like chard if we cook it like kale (spritz with olive oil, toss with a bit of garlic and salt and pepper, and bake or saute). But the roots?

[japple]

1. Roast them. Peel and cube them. Spray or drizzle with oil, and roast

them until they're fork tender. Salt. Enjoy.

Or peel, slice and boil until tender, then season with butter, salt, pepper, grated orange peel and orange juice.

One of the people I work with is really into juicing and he says you can make a very potent liver cleanser with beet juice.

Personally, I love pickled beets.

[politicat]

5. I think we'll try that boiling thing.

I'm working late this week, and DH is working early, so dinner involves very simple directions. (He can cook, but he ... shudder... fries bologna. And puts uncooked hot dog slices on salads. And has been known to combine half jars of leftover taco meat and fried rice over corn chips and top all with salsa and cheese and the OMGMTiB* hot sauce. His food choices scare me to death.)

I'm not a fan of any kind of "sweet" pickle, nor of sweet and sour anything, so pickled beets always left me really cold. I know, I'm a bad American... I despise sweet and sour chicken.

Juicing we don't do... yet. I have an antique Vitamix coming to me from my great-grandmother, so we'll see what I can do with it when it gets here.

*Oh My God My Tongue is Blistered

[japple]

14. Hi Politicat. I love your descriptions of your DH's creations!!

Or should I say abominations?? Desecrations?

Beets are wonderful food--some folks can't eat them because they're kind of intense. I always liked them because they have an earthy taste. Let us hear how you cooked them.

[OldLeftieLawyer]

2. Borscht

Oh, what a lovely idea.

If I had the energy - and the beets - I might even consider fixing a batch.

Soup - not a bad solution to the food funk - and it never occurred to me that allergies could be a part of that syndrome, so thanks for mentioning it. The pollen here is awful, and I think you're on to something.

Borscht. Or pickled eggs and onions and beets. Jars and jars of them. Yummy.

[politicat]

6. If there are enough...

I liked Borscht when I was in Kiev -- it's a great summer food if you live in an apartment building where the power lines have been stolen because copper is selling for ten times its normal value (and because so many buildings were having to replace power lines at the same time, because thieves could get a good price for copper wire on the grey market... can you see the vicious cycle at work here?) Thanks for reminding me - I just emailed my former colleague for her recipe.

I know it's allergies for us. This happens every spring, and this year's worse than normal. Because I'm enough of a solipsist to believe that, since I A) put in a garden and B) put in a clothes line, and C) finally found a drug that works if I can get it, this is the year that the weather will be cold, wet, rainy and utterly miserable all spring and summer.

[The empressof all]

3. Beet Salad

I shred raw beets with fennel, jicama and a little red onion and dress with some orange vinaigrette. (OJ, EVOO, a splash of white wine vinegar and some orange zest) Salt and Pepper to taste.

It's a very refreshing salad.

[eyesroll]

4. If they're little, roast them whole; if they're big, cut into quarters

450 degrees, in olive oil, S&P, check at 15 minutes. Beets are weird with me -- sometimes they take 15 minutes, sometimes they take 45.

Peel them after they're cooked (the skins will slip off), then slice, and serve on a baguette with VERY sharp cheddar, onions and mustard, OR with goat cheese, balsamic vinegrette-tossed salad greens.

[troubleinwinter]

7. OHMYGAWD! Send them to MEEEEEE!!!!!

Steamed, and with butter. Period.

Oh, YUMMM!!!!!

[troubleinwinter]

8. My daughter had a big ol' male cat.

The sweetest, gentlest cat in the whole wide world, UNTIL I tried to bring beets from garden to house. He tried to kill me. He attacked me. That 20 lb. cat climbed up me to get those fresh beets.

I finally had to harvest my beets only after being sure he was locked in a bedroom. He never cared a thing about Italian string beans or basil. But he would KILL me for beets.

I love fresh beets.

Edit: His name was Salmon.

[grasswire]

9. how interesting

I had a tabby who went nuts for corn silk. If I brought corn home, he was immediately in the grocery bag trying to get the silk. I assumed it was a nutritional deficiency of some kind for an indoor cat.

[japple]

10. I had a kitty that loved sauteed red bell pepper, and another one like

pinto beans, but neither cat would kill for them.

[wryter2000]

12. I had a cat once that loved melon

It would gnaw on the rind after we were through eating the melon. Cat's are strange.

[japple]

13. A friend's tortoiseshell loves raw corn on the cob. After my

friend would cut the corn off the cob, she gave the cat a little piece of the cob. The cat sucked all the "milk" out of it and then carried it around the house for days. Yep, cats are weird.

[wryter2000]

11. Save some for me, too!

I love beets. I boil them until they're tender and then peel them. (The peel comes right off.) Slice thickly and warm up in some butter.

I read once Julia Child had "quite a passion for fresh beets."

[Lefty48197]

15. Put them in a brown paper bag, roll it up tightly

sneak out of the house after dark, place the bag of beets on your neighbor's porch, then RUN LIKE THE WIND!

"Like Scottish cuisine, there's a lot of Russian cuisine that seems to be based on a dare." - LMAO