Summer Beets with Chia
2015 marks my first year as a home gardener…because it is my first year with an honest-to-goodness yard. Living in Vancouver, land of the condo, having a yard is a real luxury. One that I intend to put to delicious use!
One of my favourite parts of gardening, besides the meditative stress relief, is that the greens on all my veggies are so tender and gorgeous. So when it comes time to pull up the beets, I have all these lovely greens to use up too. This dish is pretty typical of what we eat in the Nielsen home: simple flavours, lots of veg + always with a protein.
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Summer Beets with Chia
Easy, simple, colourful and balanced meal! Absolutely delicious and great for your health!
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Ingredients
Beets
- 4 large beets, (about 4 cups chopped), with greens attached (or sub one bunch of chard if no beet greens available)
- 3 tablespoons tahini
- 3 tablespoons chia seeds
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon maple syrup, (if needed to adjust sweetness of beets)
Tofu
- 1 package tofu
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 teaspoon shiro (white) miso
- 1 teaspoon maple syrup
Greens
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon freshly grated horseradish, (or 1/2 teaspoon prepared horseradish...but it won't be the same)
Equipment
- Food Processor
Instructions
- Preheat oven (or BBQ) to 400 degrees
- Separate greens from beets. Wash, peel and chop beets into 1/2 inch thick chunks. Toss with 2 tbsp olive oil and salt and pepper and roast until tender, approximately 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, cut tofu into 4 ‘steaks’ by slicing block in half to create 2 squares and slicing those squares in half to make two thinner squares. Mix olive oil, maple and miso in a small bowl and rub tofu with sauce and set aside.
- De-stem, wash and shred beet greens into ribbons.
- When beets have 10 minutes to go, grill or pan-fry tofu 4-5 minutes a side.
- When beets are cooling, in a sauté pan on medium heat, add olive oil and beet greens and sauté until wilted. Remove from heat, season with salt and pepper and toss with lemon juice, zest and horseradish.
- Puree beets in food processor. Add chia seeds, tahini and maple syrup and mix. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt. This will create a thick, rustic puree. If you prefer a silker texture, drizzle in olive oil while pureeing to desired texture.
- To serve, plate tofu on a bed of pureed beets and top with beet greens.
Notes
Make it quicker: precook and refrigerate beets a day ahead or buy precooked beets. Recipe will come together in 20 minutes this way.
Make it simpler for everyday: Just serve tofu and greens with whole roasted beets. Still super delicious!
