Six easy ways with superfood beetroot

Beet yourself up!

Colourful, sweet and earthy, what’s not to love about beautiful beetroot? This delicious ruby red root veg packs a powerful nutritional punch and is super versatile; roasted, ready cooked, pickled or raw, it’s a purple superstar that’s perfect with strong flavours and adds unbeatable moistness to chocolate cake! Here are 6 easy ways beetroot can jazz up your menu:

How about hummus?

Drain a 250g can of chickpeas, combine with 180g cooked beetroot and the zest and juice of 1 lemon and blitz in a food processor for 1 minute. Add 1 clove of minced garlic, seasoning to taste, 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil and blitz until smooth. Stir through 1 tbsp natural yogurt and get dipping!

Crunch time!

Coleslaw is so easy, and you can make it up as you go along, depending on your taste, but here’s the general idea; grate raw b beetroot and carrots, add thinly sliced red onion, mix with mayo and low fat plain yoghurt, seasoning to taste, a bit of chilli and ginger if you like a kick…and enjoy!

You old smoothie!

Nutritious, delicious and great for heart health. Peel and roughly chop 2 small raw beetroot and 1 small peeled, quartered and cored apple. Put them in a blender with 50g blueberries, 1 tbsp grated ginger and 300ml water and blitz until smooth. Cheers!

Hot pink mess!

Kids will love this mashed potato with a twist, because it’s so pretty! Peel 400g mashing potatoes, cut into chunks and boil in salted water until tender. Add 4 plain cooked beetroot to the water and simmer for 2 minutes more. Drain, add 4tbsp creme fraiche, salt and pepper and mash until smooth.

We’re jammin!

This sweet, tangy relish is a great partner for cheese. Take 4 small cooked chopped beetroot, 1 peeled and finely chopped apple, 50g halved red grapes, 1 finely chopped red chilli, 50g light brown soft sugar and 3 tbsp balsamic vinegar. Simmer everything together for 30-35 mins until jammy, adding a little water if needed, and leave to cool.

Summer lovin’

Rev up your summer salads and add a dash of culinary colour with roasted, sliced or grated beetroot. Its earthy sweetness is perfect with strong, salty flavours like feta cheese or mackerel and it will add warmth and depth to any dish. It also works well with sliced oranges, walnuts, bulb fennel, lentils, strong spices and cooling avocado and yoghurt.