And The Beets Go On

By LAURA GROSS-HIGGINS

As On Cape readers may have noticed, my mantra is that it is all about the recipe. You might ask why. I was a fussy eater as a child.

I grew up liking the usual vegetables—peas, corn, and green beans—and not liking cabbage, Brussels sprouts, turnips, lima beans, broccoli and beets. There were probably a few more, but as I write this, those are the ones that come to mind. And I grew up in a household with five children, and after age 9, only one parent. And that parent was not into catering to individual tastes, except on our birthdays. That’s the way it was. And if you wanted dessert, you had to eat everything you were served. Waste not, want not.

As I got older (and out in the world), some of my palate prejudices softened. I was willing to try new things and when I found a way of preparing a vegetable I liked, I remembered.

This article is about beets. I have found that for many people, you either like beets or you don’t. I did not, until I traveled to England and had them pickled, as a salad garnish. I enjoyed them. And then I looked to find a recipe for them. Somehow the pickling diminished the strong, earthy flavor that boiled beets have, which I disliked.

My stepmother, as we got older, also experimented with making condiments. One of the ones I remembered was called Eingemacht, or Beets Preserve. It is a recipe that is of German-Jewish origin. Recently, my daughter gave me two pounds of beets, and so I tried to make a recipe for beets preserve that was in my recipe files. I hadn’t made it in a long time. It came out good. It tastes especially good paired with fresh mozzarella, on toasted olive bread. But it is good also with meat or poultry. 

I have also found a recipe for a salad with cooked beets that I like.

And I remembered that you can make a cake with cooked beet puree, too. And in mentioning this to a friend, Darolyn Peterson, she said she knew someone who made such a cake and did it wonderfully. That woman, Kathy McEvoy-Allen, was kind enough to make the recipe, frost it and give it to me. It is delicious and moist and rich. Definitely something to add to your cake recipes. Kathy grew up in Falmouth, and I knew her from my time as a children’s librarian in town. She works at the Chapoquoit Grill in West Falmouth and at Paine’s Patio Furniture in Bourne. She makes this cake for special occasions.

According to an online article I found, beets are a good source of folate, potassium and copper, plus dietary fiber, magnesium, phosphorus, vitamin C, iron and vitamin B6. 

I hope that you might try these recipes, especially those of you who are not beet fans. They have changed my attitude about them.

Eingemacht (Beets Preserve)

2 lb beets

1 c. water

1 ½ c. sugar

peel and juice of 1 lemon (cut the rind into slivers)

1/8 tsp ground allspice

1 tsp ground ginger

c. 8 oz. blanched slivered almonds

Peel and then precook the beets. Grate the beets coarsely (Wear old clothes!—beet juice stains). I recommend doing this in a food processor. Using a peeler, remove the rind from the lemon before juicing it. Cut it into small slivers.

Cook the sugar and water in a large saucepan (8- to 9-quart pan) for 10 minutes.

Add the beets to the sugar. Add the lemon juice and peel, the allspice and ginger.

Simmer uncovered for an hour on very low heat. I have found that it takes more than an hour. You will know it’s ready, when a spoon, drawn against the bottom of the pan, makes a channel that does not immediately fill with the liquid. When it does this, remove from heat. Stir in the nuts now. 

Ladle the preserve into hot sterilized jars and let them cool. Refrigerate.

Makes four or so 8-ounce jars

Beet Salad (from “Sephardic Cooking” by Copeland Marks)

1/4 c. wine vinegar

2 TBSP olive oil

2 tsp sugar

1 garlic clove, chopped fine

1 small onion, cut into thin slices (1/3 cup)

2 lbs canned beet slices, well drained

1/4 cup stuffed olives

Mix the wine vinegar, oil, sugar, garlic well in a small bowl. Combine the onion, beets and olives in a salad bowl and mix well.

Pour the dressing mixture over the salad and toss several times.

Refrigerate. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Serves 8

Kathy’s Red Devil Cake

15-ounce can sliced beets

3 eggs

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups unbleached white flour

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Generously oil a 9-inch square or round baking pan. (I (Kathy) think I usually line the bottom with a round of parchment to ensure it comes out easily.) I’ve used two 8-inch round pans to create two thinner layers.

Drain the beets, reserving 1/2 cup of the juice. In a blender, puree the beets with the reserved juice to make about 1¼ cups of puree. Set aside.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs well. Thoroughly whisk in the sugar, oil, vanilla, salt and beet puree until very smooth. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa and baking soda. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients a little at a time, whisking until smooth.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan.

Frosting

1 cup of dark chocolate chips

1/2 cup of heavy cream

1 TBSP butter (optional)

Maldon salt (optional)

Heat the cream in a deep bowl in the microwave, about 3 to 4 minutes. Watch that it does not bubble over the rim. When hot, pour over the chocolate chips and stir until smooth. If you want the frosting to be glossy, add the pat of butter.

Spread over the cooled cake. You can finish it with a very light sprinkling of Maldon salt.