More ways to prepare Beets!

Back in May we posted a few popular ways to prepare beets (raw, roasted, and boiled), which you can find by expanding the May posts in the blog archive.

We'd like to give you a three more options for preparing beets that we hope you'll enjoy.

1. Moderate (boiled and pureed): Borscht

Borscht is a type of soup that originates from Central and Eastern Europe that includes beets, cabbage, tomato, and onions.

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 1/2 cups chopped green cabbage (about 1/4 of small head)
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 5 cups (or more) canned vegetable broth
• 6 2-inch-diameter beets, peeled, chopped
• 1 cup drained canned chopped tomatoes

• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

• Low-fat sour cream
• Chopped fresh parsley

Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add cabbage and onion and sauté until cabbage softens, about 5 minutes. Add 5 cups broth, beets and tomatoes. Bring soup to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes.

Puree 2-3 cups of soup in blender; return to remaining soup in pot. This will help thicken the soup while still leaving nice chunks of beets and tomatoes to savor. If desired, add more broth by 1/2 cupfuls to thin soup. Add lemon juice; season with salt and pepper.

Ladle soup into bowls. Top with dollop of sour cream; sprinkle with parsley.

(adopted from beet and cabbage borscht recipe as seen on epicurious.com)

2. Moderate-Difficult (boiled, grated): Beet Ravioli with Poppy Seed Butter

Ingredients:

Filling:

2 large red or golden beets or 4 medium beets (about 14 ounces)

• 1/2 cup fresh whole-milk ricotta cheese
• 2 tablespoons dried breadcrumbs
• 2 teaspoons garam marsala
• 
  

• 
  
• Fresh Egg Pasta:
• 4 large eggs
• 3 cups white flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons olive oil (if using food processor)
• water

Poppy Seed Butter:

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
• 1 tablespoon poppy seeds
• Freshly grated Parmesan cheese

To make pasta dough in a processor:
Blend flour, eggs, salt, and 2 tablespoons water in a food processor until mixture just begins to form a ball, adding more water, drop by drop, if dough is too dry (dough should be firm and not sticky). Process dough for 15 seconds more to knead it. Transfer to a floured surface and let stand, covered with an inverted bowl, 1 hour to let the gluten relax and make rolling easier.

To make pasta dough by hand:
Mound flour on a work surface, preferably wooden, and make a well in center. Add eggs, salt, and 2 tablespoons water to well. With a fork, gently beat eggs and water until combined. Gradually stir in enough flour to form a paste, pulling in flour closest to egg mixture and being careful not to make an opening in outer wall of well. Knead remaining flour into mixture with your hands to form a dough, adding more water drop by drop if dough is too dry (dough should be firm and not sticky). Knead dough until smooth and elastic, 8 to 10 minutes. Cover with an inverted bowl and let stand 1 hour to let the gluten relax and make rolling easier.

While pasta dough is resting:

Place beets in a large sauce pan and boil for approximately 20 minutes or until beets are very tender. Drain and cool. Peel beets; finely grate into medium bowl. Add ricotta cheese and season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in breadcrumbs. Set aside.

Roll pasta with pasta maker:
Divide dough into 8 pieces, then flatten each piece into a rough rectangle and cover rectangles with an inverted large bowl. Set rollers of pasta machine on widest setting.

Lightly dust 1 rectangle with flour and feed through rollers. (Keep remaining rectangles under bowl.) Fold rectangle in half and feed it, folded end first, through rollers 7 or 8 more times, folding it in half each time and feeding folded end through. Dust with flour if necessary to prevent sticking. Turn dial to next (narrower) setting and feed dough through rollers without folding. Continue to feed dough through rollers once at each setting, without folding, until you reach narrowest setting. Dough will be a smooth sheet (about 36 inches long and 4 inches wide). Cut sheet crosswise in half. Lay sheets of dough on lightly floured baking sheets to dry until leathery but still pliable, about 15 minutes. (Alternatively, lightly dust pasta sheets with flour and hang over the backs of straight-backed chairs to dry.) Roll out remaining pieces of dough in same manner.

No Pasta Maker?

For ravioli you can roll the pasta dough with a rolling pin until the dough is approximately 1/8th to 1/4th inch thick. Start by dividing the dough into four pieces and work with each fourth individually.

Cutting Ravioli Rounds:

After you have thin pasta sheets, using 3-inch round biscuit cutter, cut sheet into rounds. Transfer rounds to lightly floured baking sheet; cover with plastic wrap. Repeat with remaining dough.

Stuffing Ravioli:

Place 8 pasta rounds on work surface, keeping remaining dough covered with plastic. Place small bowl of water next to work surface. Spoon 1 teaspoon beet filling onto half of each round. Dip fingertip into water and dampen edge of 1 round. Fold dough over filling, pushing out as much air as possible and pressing edges firmly to seal. Transfer to prepared towels. Repeat with remaining rounds. (Can be prepared 1 week ahead. Transfer to rimmed baking sheet and place in freezer until frozen solid, about 6 hours. Transfer ravioli to resealable plastic bags).

Cooking Ravioli:

Melt butter in large skillet over medium heat and stir in poppy seeds; keep warm. Working in batches, cook ravioli in large pot of boiling salted water until cooked through, stirring often, about 2 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer to skillet with melted butter; toss to coat. Divide ravioli among 8 plates; sprinkle with Parmesan.

(adopted from beet ravioli with poppy seed butter recipe as seen on epicurious.com)

3. Moderate (boiled and baked): Chocolate Beet Bundt Cake

Trust me. This cake is worth trying.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup (120 ml) canola oil
• 1 1/2 cups (340 g) packed dark brown sugar
• 2 cups (450 g) puréed cooked (boiled or steamed) red beets (about 3 medium-size beets)
• 1/2 cup (90 g) nondairy semisweet chocolate chips, melted
• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla extract
• 2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons (9 g) baking powder (look for aluminum-free)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C, or gas mark 5), and lightly oil a Bundt pan.

In a mixing bowl, cream together oil and brown sugar. Add beets, melted chocolate chips, and vanilla, and mix well.

In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Add to wet beet mixture, and stir until just combined.

Pour into prepared Bundt pan, and bake for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

Cool in pan for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack. Cool completely. Before serving, dust with confectioners' sugar and top with blueberries, if desired.

If you want frosting you could also reserve 1/4 cup (55 g) of the puréed beets (or purée a fourth beet) to create a red/pink frosting or ganache, using confectioners' sugar and nondairy butter such as Earth Balance. For a ganache, use the water in which you cooked the beets to thin out the topping. For frosting, fluff up using a hand mixer.

(adopted from chocolate beet bundt cake recipe as seen on epicurious.com)