Beets! Healthy, colorful, sweet too

I’m a big fan of beets. They’re naturally sweet and healthy, and they add a splash of color to any dish. You can make a salad with beets, or you can use them to make to an all-natural fabric dye.

They come in a rainbow of colors and many different shapes and sizes. They’re awesome when they’re pickled and swimming in cottage cheese.

Beets were important to the ancient Greeks and Romans, who used them for both medicinal and culinary purposes.

The Russians believed that eating a lot of borscht, a soup made with beets, was the key to a long life.

Here in the Tri-state region, it’s easy to grow beets or to buy them fresh at farmers’ markets—but some people still rely on canned or pickled beets that they buy at the supermarket. The ones in cans and jars often come with artificial sweeteners and coloring. Plus they’re sometimes slimy and unappetizing.

It can take a while to cook fresh beets; but I think it’s worth the effort. They take a long time to cook, but they don’t require a lot of care.

Just cut off the greens, wrap the beets in foil (you can drizzle some olive oil on them if you like) and roast them until they’re tender. Of course they cook fastest at higher temperatures; but the heat does kill some of the  nutrients.  Try a moderate heat, such as 350 degrees; put them in the oven and check on them every 30 minutes or so.

Beets are stuffed with vitamins A and C and with nutrients that can cleanse and even restore the kidneys and gallbladder. They contain powerful nutrient compounds such as betacyanin and glycine betaine, and they have a lot of folate. Folate can help prevent certain cancers (such as colon cancer), as well as heart disease, stroke and birth defects.

Beets are also a good source of fiber, which keeps the entire body working smoothly, especially the digestive system.

Beets are like a fountain of youth. They keep you looking young and feeling fit.

Red and golden beet salad

Adapted from “Vegetable Harvest� by Patricia Wells

4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Fine sea salt to taste

1 tablespoon fresh tarragon

4 raw beets, two yellow and two red,

cleaned of all dirt

Whisk together the lemon juice, mustard and olive oil in a  small bowl, and then divide into two large bowls.

Grate the yellow beets into one of the dishes, then grate the red into the other dish. Toss to combine the beets and dressing.

Serve right away or cover with plastic wrap and keep refrigerated for up to one day.  If you serve each guest one scoop of gold beets and one scoop of red, this recipe should serve about four people.