Colorful Beet Salad

I’ve kind of been on this beet kick lately. Since I was a kid, I’ve loved the taste of beets and now with all these great, colorful varieties available at the Farmer’s Market (from orange to deep burgandy), there’s no end in sight to my exploration of beet recipes. (Have you ever had beets with blue cheese and walnuts? To. Die. For.)

Here’s the latest keeper recipe in the beet arena. It’s quick, tastes great, and looks so beautiful.

Lemon Lover’s Beets

2 Tablespoons butter

1 Tablespoon sugar

Zest and juice of 1 lemon

8 small to medium cooked beets, quartered or baby beets

1 Tablespoon chopped parsley

1. Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat. Add sugar and lemon juice. Cook until slightly syrupy, about 5 minutes.

2. Add beets. Heat through, stirring frequently. Garnish with lemon zest and chopped parsley.

2 servings (but we used it as a side dish for four and had enough)

This recipe came from the Green Room restaurant in Dallas, via the Chicago Tribune. They say the prep time is 5 minutes and the cooking time is 8, but obviously that doesn’t include cooking the beets. I prefer to roast my beets in the oven, wrapped in foil at I think it’s 350, until you can easily poke through them with a sharp knife.

Then you have the messy fun of peeling the skin off the hot beet, which is pretty easy to do but can leave your hands looking like you’ve committed a murder. Gotta love that beautiful beet red color.