Beets Three Ways // My love for beets continued.

It’s no secret, I’m a lover of the beet. I talked recently about incorporating beets in the little one’s diet in my Operation Veggie series and now we are going to talk about incorporating them into the grown up’s diet too! A lot of adults are turned off by beets but they are an amazing super food full of vitamin C, fiber, potassium, and are wonderful for fertility thanks to their high levels of vitamin B!

2 medium golden beets
2 Cups cooked chickpeas
3 cloves Garlic
⅓ Cup Olive Oil
¾ Teaspoon Sea Salt
½ Meyer Lemon, juiced
½  Teaspoon Cumin
½  Teaspoon Turmeric
¾ Teaspoon Tahini

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Wash and trim your beets and then wrap them in foil and roast them for around an hour. Do not toss your beet greens! Keep them for later, we will be using them!
After beets are done roasting let them completely cool and then remove their skin and cube them.
Add your beets, garlic, olive oil, salt, cumin, turmeric, chickpeas, and tahini to your food processor. For the smoothest hummus is suggest taking the extra time to take the skin off of all the chickpeas. The difference is life changing. Puree the mixture and then add in your lemon juice! You can adjust the consistency of the hummus by adding more or less lemon juice. I garnished my hummus with a little drizzle of olive oil, a sprinkle of chipotle chili powder, and a few little pieces of beet and beet green.

The next way I utilized my beets were to roast them and use them as a side with dinner. This side is a great way to add some color to your plate and the flavors are so delicious! My husband ate them all, even though at first he was a little frightened that I had given him a pile of beets, not hidden in something. I personally could eat these every day, the glaze is amazing.

ROASTED BEETS WITH A BALSAMIC GLAZE // 
3 medium-sized golden beets, tops removed
3 medium-sized red beets, tops removed
Salt and pepper, to taste
Olive oil

BALSAMIC GLAZE//
½  cup balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon honey or maple syrup

As with before, keep those beet greens for later!
Preheat your over to 350 degrees F. Remove the skins from your beets and cube them up. Toss your beets in a light drizzle of olive oil and salt and pepper and then place them on a foil covered baking sheet. Roast them for around an hour or until your beets are soft when poked with a fork. Let beets cool a little. While your beets are cooling combine your vinegar, and honey or maple syrup to a sauce pan and heat it on medium high until it reaches a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce to a simmer and let the glaze become a little thick. Drizzle this mixture over your beets and then serve!

Now for those beet greens! A lot of people add them to salads or sautee them with swiss chard or spinach but I like to make pesto with them! I love their earthy flavor paired with the nuttiness of almonds and the tang of  little lemon juice. I used this pesto to top some spaghetti squash and it was a big hit with everyone!

BEET GREEN PESTO // 
Beet greens – from about 6 beets
 ½ cup light packed fresh basil leaves
1 clove garlic
½ cup sliced unsalted almonds
½ cup olive oil (more or less depending on taste and texture)
A squeeze of lemon juice
Kosher salt
Fresh cracked pepper

Blanch beet greens and then squeeze out all excess water. Add greens, basil, garlic, and almonds to food processor and combine until mixture is fine. Then drizzle in olive oil and lemon juice until you reach the desired consistency. Add fresh ground pepper and salt to taste and then pulse once more to combine! Serve with your favorite pastas, veggies, or proteins.

I hope that these great recipes inspire you to eat your veggies and utilize every part for optimal nutritional benefits! Let me know if you try any one these yummy treats and tag me on social media if you share your efforts! Enjoy!