Well,
with spring here, it finally means my favorite market, Hala Mirowska, is bursting with local
green and white asparagus, rhubarb, strawberries, herbs, baby potatoes and
beets. That means I’ve been in the kitchen taking advantage of all this
fantastic produce and making some simple dishes like baby potatoes with butter
and dill and steamed asparagus with lemon.
But
the latest dish is the one I want to share with you. Last week, I roasted some baby
beets with olive oil and sea salt. Since the beet greens looked so vibrant and
fresh, I decided to treat them exactly the same way I did with my Turkish
spinach roots. In the Turkish kitchen, you never throw any veggie scrap away. Something can always be reused or repurposed into something else like soup, Turkish
börek or gözleme.
 |
| Lots of lovely beets at my local markets right now here in Warsaw! |
Imagine – fushia and green-colored tender beet greens sautéed
with Turkish olive oil and lots of garlic, seasoned with a generous pinch of Turkish
pul biber. So delicious and healthy!
I
served up my beet greens meze alongside those baby potatoes, roasted beets and
grilled steaks. A perfect spring dinner at home for two.
Smacznego or Afiyet olsun since this dish is almost
Turkish!
Beet Greens Meze
Ingredients:
Ingredients:
1-2 Tablespoons olive oil
6-8
ea. cloves
of garlic, roughly chopped (You can never have too much garlic!)
220 g. beet
stems, trimmed to 1-2 inches in length
300 g. beet
leaves
Generous
spoonful of pul biber (red
pepper flakes), if you like it spicy like we do
To
taste salt and freshly ground
black pepper
(Note:
The amount of beet stems and
leaves will vary depending on the beets you buy where you live. My amounts are
from 2 bunches of beets here in Warsaw. This recipe can easily be adapted to
your own taste and the amount of beets that you have.)
In
a large pan, heat the olive oil. Sauté the garlic for a few minutes until softened.
Then
add the beet stems with just a little water to help them cook. Cover the pot
with a lid. Cook for 3-4 minutes or until tender. Add the beet leaves. Replace
the lid. The leaves will wilt and cook down just like spinach. Cook briefly
until everything seems tender.
Season
the beet greens and leaves with pul
biber, salt and pepper.
This
meze can be served hot or at room temperature.
 |
| Separate the beet stems from the leaves since the stems will need to cook a few minutes longer than the tender leaves. |
2 comments:
I used to absolutely detest beetroot but Turkey has changed all that. Pickled, in a salad, in a soup - we'll eat them alone or with anything else these days. Love them. This looks great. :)
Me too! I grew up eating canned beets my whole childhood. I never knew they tasted so good until I was in my 20s! :-)
Post a Comment