GOLDEN AND RED BEETS

Beetroot, for me, is the most inspiring and remarkable vegetable. Easy to cook, super tasty, and very healthy. Beets are commonly known in the US and universally available around the world, but mostly forgotten in today’s day-to-day cuisine. Nevertheless, beets have surged in popularity recently, making them a trending superfood. Research has shown that beets and beetroot juice can enhance athletic performance, lower blood pressure, and provide numerous benefits to our liver.

After eating red beets, urine and stool will be dyed red. But do not be alarmed as this will work its way out of your body naturally within one or two days at the most.

Beets are often described as earthy. Some people describe the earthiness as tasting like dirt and dislike beets for that reason. However, when cleaned properly and cooked, that earthy taste goes away. Just follow this easy to cook recipe and you will be amazed how great and delicious beets can be!

3 small to medium-sized red beets

1 cup fresh orange juice

2 tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice

1 tbsp anise seeds

1 tbsp ground cumin

2 tbsp ground sage

1 tbsp ground cinnamon

2 tbsp cane sugar

2 cups filtered water

3 small to medium-sized yellow/golden beets

1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

2 tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice

1 star anise

1/2 tbsp cumin seeds

1 cinnamon stick

2 tbsp cane sugar

2 cups filtered water

Begin by trimming and removing the tops and stems from the beets. Next, using a brush, scrub and wash the beets. Place the red and the golden beets into a separate medium size saucepan. Do not cook the red and golden beets together in the same saucepan. Cover the beets with freshly squeezed orange juice, freshly squeezed lime juice and filtered water. Next, add the listed spices. Stir the spices into the orange and lime juice mixture. Bring the mix to a boil. Cover the saucepans, reduce the heat, and let it simmer for about 40 minutes or until tender. Once the beets are tender, carefully drain each of their respective juices into a separate container. Rinse the cooked beets under cold water to cool them down. Once cooled, use a sharp knife to remove the skin. Refrigerate the beet juice for later use. It will come in handy to prepare our delightful Beet Mojito.

3 tbsp unsalted butter

1/2 cup walnuts

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Heat the butter in a pan and add the walnuts. Season the nuts with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Move the pan continuously to allow the walnuts to color evenly. Once the walnuts reach a golden color, drain off any excess butter by transferring them to a colander.

1 orange

1 lime

1 blood orange

1 pinch freshly ground sea salt

1 pinch freshly ground black pepper

Fresh tarragon

Separate the fillets from the citrus fruits and set them aside in individual bowls. After filleting the citrus fruits, there will be a lot of pulp and juice leftover in the membrane of each fruit. Squeeze the membrane of the lime and the membrane of the orange in one small bowl. Squeeze the membrane of the blood orange in a separate small bowl. To each bowl, add freshly ground black pepper and sea salt according to your taste, but not too much, just a pinch.

The freshly squeezed blood orange juice serves as the dressing for the red beetroots, while the freshly squeezed orange and lime juice becomes the dressing for the golden beetroots.

Use a multi-knife vegetable slicer to slice the beets into spaghetti spirals. Marinate the golden beetroot spirals in the orange and lime juice dressing. Marinate the red beetroot spirals in the blood orange juice dressing. Place the beet spirals in a colander, allowing the excess dressing to drain. Present the golden beetroots on a large plate. Repeat this process with the marinated red beetroots and plate next to the golden beetroots. Scatter the beetroots with fresh tarragon, butter roasted walnuts, and lemon fillets. Decorate the plate with orange and blood orange fillets. Season the dish with a pinch of freshly ground sea salt and pepper.