Beets come in a variety of shapes and sizes: taut and round, cylindrical, cone shaped, and asymmetrical in gradations of hue from off whites and golds to deep reds and purples.  Now’s that time, at farmers markets around the City, to marvel at the beauty of them all. 

With the highest sugar content of any vegetable, beets are decidedly sweet.  Rule of thumb: the deeper the color, the sweeter—and more earthy— the beet. Earthy is a taste sensation that’s difficult to pin down. That is, one person’s “earthy” may be another’s “tastes like dirt.” That this earthiness derives not from the soil but from the organic compound  geosim, produced by friendly microbes within it, may be a moot point. It’s possible that beets are an acquired taste.  

Early in his first term, President Barack Obama acknowledged to a reporter that he “always” avoids beets. In the same conversation, Michelle (who excluded beets from her White House vegetable garden) admitted that she does, too— believing that that there’s a “beet gene” that both she and her husband lack. But I’m convinced— if I could just get the Obamas over here for dinner, I could easily prove her wrong.

For an appetizer, I might serve a beet and goat cheese salad drizzled with olive oil—or better yet agrumato (orange-infused olive oil)—and a splash of balsamic glaze. Assuming that went over well, I’d invite the Obamas back (even if they haven’t reciprocated) – to start with the chilled summer sweet-and-sour beet borscht that, thanks to the great cooking of my Ukraine-born Bubbie, my family enjoyed on hot summer nights.

Roasted Beet Salad (serves 4)

Ingredients 

• 1 bunch small or medium beets, any color or mixed  
• 1/2 small red onion or 1 large shallot, thinly sliced
• 3 T pine nuts or chopped walnuts  
• 4 oz. fresh, soft goat cheese
• 2 Tbsp of extra virgin olive oil for roasting, more for serving
• Coarse or flaky salt, freshly ground pepper
• Drizzle of balsamic vinegar, champagne vinegar, or balsamic glaze
• Fresh basil, torn
  

Directions  

1. Preheat oven to 400°. 
2. Rinse beets, but not obsessively. Dry and trim tendrils at the root. 
3. Place the beets on a large sheet of aluminum foil, Brush lightly with olive oil, and sprinkle with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper.  Fold the corners of the foil up to the center and crimp tightly. Roast for 35-45 minutes.  
4. Test for doneness by inserting a knife blade into one beet. If it slides easily to the center, the beets are done.  If not, test in another 15 minutes; roasting time will vary with size and shape. Remove beets from the oven to cool.
5. Under cold running water, use your fingers to slip off the skins and a vegetable peeler or paring knife for any recalcitrant spots. 

Assembly and serving

Arrange thin layers of beets, slightly overlapped on a dish. Top with shards of red onion, pine nuts or chopped walnuts, and small clumps of soft, fresh goat cheese. Add salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle with olive oil and a few squiggles of balsamic glaze. Sprinkle liberally with torn basil.  Serve at room temperature. 

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Chilled Summer Beet Borscht  (serves 6)

Ingredients: 

• 3-5 medium (about 4″-5″ in diameter) beets  
• 2  cups liquid the beets have cooked in
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 4 T sugar
• 1-2 teaspoons sour salt (citric acid)* or 2 Tbsp. lemon juice, to taste
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 English cucumber, seeded and diced
• 3 scallions, green and white parts, chopped
• 2  T fresh dill or chives  (opt.)

Instructions 

1. Rinse beets, but not obsessively. Place in a large pot of water. Bring to a boil, cover loosely, and cook for 30 to 40 minutes. Test for doneness with the blade of a knife, as described above.
2. When beets are done, remove them with a slotted spoon to cool. Reserve the cooking liquid.   
3. Pouring through a fine mesh strainer, add 2 cups of the cooking liquid to a large bowl. Whisk in the chicken broth, sour salt/citric acid* or lemon juice, sugar, kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. 
4. Under cold running water, use your fingers to slip off the skins, and a vegetable peeler for any recalcitrant spots.  (The skins should slip off easily.) 
5. Slice each beet in half, laying the flat side down on a cutting board (as you would an onion). Cut into small dice**, then add to the bowl with the liquid. Taste for a nice, assertive balance between sweet (sugar, beets) and sour (citric acid or lemon juice). Chill for at least three hours. 
6. Just before serving, ladle soup and beets into bowls. Garnish with the cucumber, scallion, sour cream and optional dill or chives. 

* Sour salt is not salt, but citric acid in a crystalline form. I use it probably because my grandmother did. It can be purchased online on Amazon. (I imagine fresh lemons were hard to come by in the shtetl); and also for the purity of a sourness that’s less bright and complex than lemon juice.

** Using a box grater (pre-Cuisinart) my grandmother shredded her beets for borscht.  I dice them. Cooked beets are soft; dicing takes very little time or effort.  

Notes: 

Some recipes call for mixing about 1/2 cup of yogurt into the borscht before chilling. This renders the clear, deep purple liquid an opaque fuchsia. Omitting yogurt, I like to serve the soup clear with a dollop of sour cream that invites diners to create the color magic themselves.   

In an airtight container, beets will keep in the fridge for at least a week and longer if you douse them with a tablespoon or two of vinegar.   

Photos by Carolyn Swartz