BEETS…that’s what’s for Lunch!
Beets are root vegetables that are FULL of nutrients! In short, you can find the following in the roots and/or the green leaves on top:
- Like vitamins A & C in the greens or the B-complex vitamins in the roots.
- There is an ok amount of potassium found in beets. Remember my rant on how potassium balances sodium consumption?…(if not, you can find it in my peanut butter talk)
- Well, these things are pretty low in calories…that is unless you add things like butter and sugar or other unnecessary additions to mess up the delicious natural taste of beets!
- As you can expect, there’s no cholesterol & very small amounts of fat & a good amount of fiber.
- You can check here for a table of nutritional info and other safety precautions and more: http://www.nutrition-and-you.com/beets.html
I re-tried beets for the first time in my adult life at a conference last fall. Well, actually I didn’t realize I was eating beets, which made me appreciate the dish even more! It reminded me of scalloped potatoes, but it was more of alternating roasted & sliced potatoes & beets. About a month ago, I even tried a beet juice recipe, which made me realize that I actually LIKE Beets! It was Delicious!! I joined Joe Cross’ 5-day Juice Challenge (www.rebootwithjoe.com) and I fell in love with the Anti-Aging Beet Grape Juice. The recipe calls for grapes (I didn’t have any so I think I just used apples), celery stalks, beets, and carrots. Mmmmm mmmm Good!!
A couple of week’s ago my focus on veggies was “BEETS,” so I decided to make an attempt to re-create the conference dish. I made a Roasted Beets and (white & sweet) Potatoes Casserole! Delicious! I used canned beets and modified the recipe here: http://www.purewow.com/entry_detail/recipe/12260/Oven-roasted-beets-and-potatoes.htm
Since my meal plan includes a sandwich and salad for lunch this week, I grabbed a couple of beetroots from the grocery store to add to my salad (but for future reference I will only use fresh beets for juicing and canned beets for other uses). Today’s salad included: arugula/spinach mix, tomatoes, English cucumbers, chia seeds, roasted beets (I peeled, sliced, & roasted beets for about 30min last night), shredded cheese, and a homemade balsamic vinegar/olive oil/lemon juice salad dressing.
I even wore a deep purple shirt today in celebration of BEETS! LOL!
Salivating over Beets,
Stassi Nicole
DR. STASSI 