- The beet is the most intense of vegetables. The radish, admittedly, is more feverish, but the fire of the radish is a cold fire, the fire of discontent, not of passion. Tomatoes are lusty enough, yet there runs through tomatoes an undercurrent of frivolity. Beets are deadly serious. Tom Robbins, Jitterbug Perfume
Nothing quite matches the intensity of beets. Roasting brings out a hearty full expression of the vegetable, and it becomes at once deeply fruity and nutty. Deep ruby beets are what you want here. Always choose roots with firm skin and rich colour.
Turn oven to 375 degrees.
Scrub away any excess dirt from the roots and then chop all the vegetables into bite size pieces. Toss into pan.
pound of new red potatoes
½ pound of beets
½ pound of parsnips
about 1 tsp sea salt
lemon zest of one lemon (make sure to not grate the pith, or white stuff)
1 tbsp green or pink peppercorns
if fresh- a small handful of basil chopped, if dry- about 2 tbsp
cold-pressed olive oil (or other nut oil like walnut)
Pour a healthy dollop of oil over the veggies and toss. Then sprinkle a good fat pinch of salt over the roots, half the lemon zest, the peppercorns half smashed, the basil, and give another few tosses to make sure the vegetables are coated.
Pop in the oven and wait about 30 to 45 minutes. Stir the vegetables every once in a while, maybe every fifteen minutes or so to make sure they all get roasted. When the potatoes look golden, the roots are done. When you pull them out sprinkle the remaining lemon zest over the vegetables.
This dish is a satisfying contrast between deepness of flavour, heat and light of spice, and then creaminess of the inner roasted vegetables and their crisp skins.
The ancient Romans were among the first to cultivate beets, at first the root only being used for medicinal purposes- most commonly as a laxative! But in the Middle Ages beetroot started to catch on in northern Europe, as it loves colder climes, and those in colder climes loved it in return. The Russians in particular, and it is thanks to them that we have borscht.
A little bit later during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, there was a gardener, by name of John Gerard, superintendent of Lord Burleigh’s garden in London, who popularized the beet in his Herball, which was highly regarded. He writes, “but what might be made of the red and beautifull root, I refer unto the curious and cunning cooke, who no doubt when hee had the view therof, and is assured that it is both good and wholesome, will make thereof many and divers dishes, both faire and good”
As in his time many still regard the unfamiliar with a sneer, and among our peers we can count beets as a vegetable often maligned. Time to do away with this prejudice. They were likely exposed to those putrid overly sweet, tinned beets at a young age.
This intense, jewelled, hearty dish may help to change their minds.
