Beets

Every time my mom served beets, hot and pickled, while I was growing up I cringed. I'm sure that the fact my dad always put the ball of seasoning on my plate saying, "Look! Sarah a giant beet.," didn't help.

While in LA last March, my intense hunger forced me to try beets again when they arrived as a complimentary appetizer. I was surprised to find chilled, pickled beets sweet and tasty, and ever since then I've been hooked on buying cans of them.

Today in the NYTimes there was a cute article called A Good Year for Beets and Self-Reliance by Annie Raver. Here's an excerpt, which shares a way to pickle fresh beets. I might have to try it!

"I remembered the beet salad that I love to eat in New York: roasted diced beets, with arugula, goat cheese and walnuts. “Hmm, sounds good,” Mother said.

Then she showed me how to pickle beets the Eastern Shore way. Just trim the leaves off the washed beets, but leave an inch or so of the stems. Cutting into the root leads the beet to bleed Into the water, leaching out vitamins and flavor.

“Beets, you know, are full of iron,” said Mother, who was trained as a nutritionist.

Cook until just tender enough to stick easily with a sharp fork. Then drain, peel and slice as soon as they are cool enough to handle. Mix half a cup of sugar with half a cup of vinegar in a big bowl, stir in the warm beets, and salt to taste."