Baby I love you Beet.

Baby, I love you.
I love it when you blush, you turn beet red.

Beets are a miracle, it contains potassium, folate and manganese.
Reserve the leafy tops as it contains beta-carotene, calcium and iron.

The red pigment contains certain anti-cancer agents and are also used as a red dye.



Choose beets that are small and firm. It should be deep maroon in colour, have unblemished skin and fresh bright green leaves. The tap root should be attached.

Avoid large beets which have a hairy taproot,
as these are signs of age and toughness.
Smaller beets will be sweeter and more tender (~2 inches in diameter).

Store the root and the leaves separately. The leaves will keep for 2 days in plastic.
Trim the leaves 2 inches from the root, do not trim the tail. The root bulbs can be stored for a week in the vegetable compartment.

Beets may even be frozen.

Cooked or canned beets can be stored for one week. Do not store canned beets in the can, use a plastic container to avoid oxidation.

Cooking suggestions:

1) RAW!!!! - Wonderful when julienned into 3 mm thin slices. It gives an extra dimension to your salad or toasted sandwich. I just love the tangy taste.





2) Baked.
3) Steamed.
4) Fried
5) Grilled
6) Boiled - Cooking the beets in soup will leech its colour into the water. Afterwhich the beets will absorb the taste of the soup and become little cubes of savoury flavour, resting in red liquid. You can shape the beets into little parodies of bodyparts just because its more interesting for halloween.

Hurray to Beets!
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