I wish I could show you pictures of my vegetable beds, but after two months of neglect my garden is all but pretty. Just before I left I threw few beet seeds in the soil, hoping for some tender beets at my return. As you can see I was rewarded with these beauties.
There are so many varieties of beets, this is called Detroit Dark Red, the deep red color is amazing, and the flavor mild. As you can see these beets also produced lots of leaves, not to mention they are so pretty in the garden. The package says that 1 cup of greens has more iron than an hamburger, you can't beet that (pun intended!).
The first time I ate beet greens was about 4 years ago, prepared by a lovely sous chef I used to work with. She saved them from going into the trash because nobody else thought of using them (the other sous chefs were a lazy bunch, never seen anything like that). She simply sautéed them and they were delicious, I became a believer. I love growing beets, I harvest them young so I can eat the whole thing, even the delicious leaves.
The best part of this frittata is that I used all ingredients from the garden, down to the eggs my chickens laid. Can't get more locavore than this. I love the pink hue of this frittata, could it be the iron?
Delicious!
Frittata with Beet Greens
Two medium shallots
1 garlic clove
2 tbs extra virgin olive oil
Leaves of 4-5 beets, chopped
3 large eggs
Salt and pepper to taste
Heat a non stick skillet and add 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Sautée the shallots until translucent. Add the garlic and the chopped leaves and cook for 10 minutes, until tender, let cool. Beat the eggs with salt and pepper. Add the cooled leaves. Heat a non stick skillet, add 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil, then add the egg mixture. Cook on medium heat until very little liquid is left. With the help of a plate turn the frittata upside down into the skillet. Cook for two more minutes. Enjoy warm with a salad and some bread for a complete meal. Makes two servings.
Other frittata recipes:
Kale Frittata
Borage Frittata
3 comments:
Beet greens are wonderful and taste so refined. That frittata must taste so good!
Cheers,
Rosa
One day, I bought a bunch of beets at the market and the farmer was about to cho off the greens: I stopped him before it was too late. When I told him I ate the greens, he gave me a mountain of them for free, the discard from other customers.
I am glad you found beets where you had sown seeds. I have never tried growing beets: I should rethink that.
Frittata is a very nice way of using the beet greens.
Rosa, I agree with you, the taste is fantastic.
Simona, e' un peccato che le foglie vengano buttate. Beets take very little space, grow relatively fast (especially if you pick them small), and you can eat everything. They need really soft soil to grow well though.
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