Waste Not Want Not

As a poor, I have to make my food last.  Especially when that food comes from the farmer's market.  (I have been known to accuse nearly every farmer's market vendor of ripping me off - not to their face, of course.)  This week, we treated ourselves to a $2.00 bunch of beets.  It wasn't a total rip, but only because I know how to make it last.

I am not even going to mention how I loathe beet-haters, which would surely turn into a blog-long rant.  Haters are simply wrong.

For beets, we use everything but the squeal.  The greens are turned into pesto, and the beets are roasted.  Recipes follow.

Beet Greens Pesto

Ingredients:

Greens, including stems, from one bunch of beets

8 cloves garlic

One handful (approx. 3/4-1 cup) almonds, or any other kind of nut besides peanuts

Olive oil, probably 1/3 cup or so

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Method:

This makes about 1.5 cups of pesto.

Put everything but the olive oil and salt in a food processor.

Drizzle about 2 tbsp olive oil on top.

Process until pesto-like.

Scrap down the sides, and add more olive oil if necessary, and process again.

You are looking for a pesto-like consistency - some like it more liquidy than others, so the amount of olive oil used is up to you.

Taste it.  If it isn't salty enough, add some salt.  Beet greens are naturally salty, so you might find you don't need any more salt.

This pesto makes a great cracker topping, and is delicious added to mashed potatoes.

It doesn't taste like beets, so if you cry at the thought of eating beets, be quiet and eat this.

Beet Greens Aioli

Ingredients:

Beet greens pesto

Mayo

Method:

Combine equal parts beet greens pesto and mayo.

Spread on anything you'd put mayo on.

Makes a good dip too.

Cinchy Roasted Beets

Ingredients:

One bunch of beets, washed with stems and roots chopped off

A drizzle of olive oil (about 1 tbsp)

Salt

Pepper

Method:

Preheat toaster oven to 400.  

Cut beets into squares/wedges, about 1 inch square or so.

Put in baking dish.

Drizzle with olive oil, and add a bit of salt and pepper.  Be careful not to add too much salt.  I'd start with four shakes, and then add more once I tasted them if necessary.

Cook for 40 minutes, until soft but not super soft.