At first glance, this week’s organic basket was a little light. And when we spend $10 extra for organic, that is not something we want to see. Upon closer inspection though, I think the items themselves were small (no giant broccoli or huge squash), so the overall haul was pretty good.
Our $26.50 organic basket included:
-6 gala apples
-8 small mangoes
-3 kiwi
-4 lb bag oranges
-6 pears
-6 bananas
-6 sweet potatoes
-6 roma tomatoes
-1 bunch spinach
-2 cucumbers
-6 beets
Leila dove right into the apples while we tried to figure out our mystery vegetable. I’m pretty certain they are beets. We had six of them in various sizes:
Two were tiny!
We also ordered the five pack of 9-grain bread for $10 so that we could stock up for the holiday break that our co-op is taking.
So, about the beets…Do you like them? What is your favorite way to prepare them? Please share in the comment section!
I love beets now, but refused to eat them as a kid. I must confess that I often buy my beets pre-cooked from Trader Joes which makes them so easy to use, but I have roasted fresh beets in the oven before and they do taste best this way. I like to slice them up and serve them on some arugala with toasted walnuts, goat cheese, and vinaigrette Yum!
I've never cooked beets (only juiced with them) but I hear that roasted beets are delicious.
I love beets! They are delicious roasted, much in the same way you would roast a potato – cut up into 1" chunks or so, peeled, toss with olive oil, salt & pepper, then roast at 425f until done. Another way is to cut them into matchsticks and then pan sautee with fennel to make a delish salad. In a large pan, heat a few tbs olive oil and a few cloves of minced garlic until fragrant. Then add your beets and sautee until they are almost fork tender. Then, you can add your fennel (also cut into matchsticks) and cook until everything is fork tender (can have a little crunch, that's okay). Remove from heat and season with salt & pepper and some chopped fresh parsley. Add a few more drizzles of oil and then add your favorite red wine or balsamic vinegars (or both!). The key to this being wonderful being very generous with the vinegars. For the salad, I find the ratio of 3 medium sized beets to 1 medium head of fennel to be just right. I love beets and you will, too!
I love this Beet & Feta Salad: http://tinyurl.com/2dtsbm2
My son used to gobble it up too, but the last time I made them he refused to even touch them – I guess that's a 16 month old for you!
I plan to use my beets this week in my favorite chocolate beet bundt cake. It is so moist and delicious and you can barely detect the beet flavor. Those who don't know beets are in the cake will be none the wiser when they eat it because it is so delicious!
Here's a link to the recipe I used:
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Beet-Bundt-Cake/Detail.aspx
To make this healthier, note that I modified the recipe by using agave nectar in place of the sugar, whole wheat pastry flour in place of the all-purpose flour. and omitted the confectioners sugar.
Also, I paired this with a whipped cream cheese frosting:
INGREDIENTS:
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
3/4 cup agave nectar sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
DIRECTIONS:
In a small bowl beat whipping cream until stiff peaks form; set aside.
In a large bowl combine cream cheese, agave, and vanilla. Beat until smooth, then fold in whipped cream.
Keep refrigerated!
Wow, thanks for all of the beet ideas everyone! I am excited to cook them now š