beets: a love(/hate) story

I always think I love beets. They make any dish more beautiful with their deep magenta color and jewel-like sheen. But when I'm honest with myself, I realize that beets are my food version of a "small dose" friend:  fun with a group for a night out, but too much of them and I want to gag. (Sorry if that's a little too graphic and/or mean; I promise no one who is reading this falls into that category of friend!)

just look at them...anyone would be tempted!

So, of course I bought a giant bunch of beets at the market on Saturday, and now I have to eat all of them. Last night I roasted a few, and I'm looking for different things to do with them that aren't totally beet-centric. Today for lunch I made this sandwich, and it was everything I could ask for:  crunchy and melty, sweet and savory, comforting and refreshing.

So, if you find yourself with an extra beet or six, give it a shot.

open-faced beet and brie melt
serves one, but is easily multiplied
no nutrition facts for this one...it's too imprecise.

ingredients:
hard roll, or sandwich-sized
   section of baguette
1 small beet, roasted*
1 ounce brie
a few toasted chopped
   walnuts
1 leaf lettuce
a few leaves of fresh basil
red wine vinegar, to taste
salt and pepper, to taste

instructions:
Set broiler on high. Cut roll in half and beets and brie into thin slices. Top each half of roll with beets and brie, and broil until cheese is melted and brown in spots. Remove from oven and top with walnuts, lettuce, basil, vinegar, and salt and pepper.

Tell me this isn't delicious, whether you love beets or not.

* I like to peel my beets when they're raw, wrap them individually in foil, and roast them in a 425-degree oven. Depending on their size, it takes 45-60 minutes to get them to fork-tender stage.

really, really easy lime bars

           

I can't help myself. Whenever I'm invited to any event that includes food, I immediately volunteer to bring dessert. Even when I have one free hour between the time I volunteer and the event.

Last night was one of those times. As I always do, I considered making brownies, but since it's summer and all, I thought something cool and citrusy would be better-suited to the weather. I found a few lemon/lime bar/pie recipes that looked interesting, but in the end I pretty much made up my own based on what I had in my apartment and what was easy. (In this case, "easy" meant only one cooking method [oven] and no pastry blender required for the crust.)

Overall, I was very pleased with the results. The bars' only less-than-appealing feature was their 1970s avocado green color, which resulted from my addition of two drops of green food coloring. So, I recommend skipping the food coloring, and if you want to give the bars a little color just top each of them with a small twist of lime.

really, really easy lime bars
makes 16 bars
per bar:  188.9 cal, 7.3g fat, 27.0g carb, 0.4g fiber, 3.8g  protein, 5+ weight watchers

ingredients:

1/2 c butter, softened

1/3 c sugar

1 c all-purpose flour

1/3 c old-fashioned oats

1 14-oz can fat-free sweetened condensed milk

5 large egg yolks

1/2 c lime juice (fresh preferred, but I used bottled)

Powdered sugar, for serving

instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and butter an 8 x 8" baking pan.. In a medium bowl, cream together butter and sugar using a mixer on medium speed. Add flour and oats and mix on medium speed until thoroughly combined. Press mixture into pan, and place in oven (once it is preheated, of course). Bake crust for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, in another medium bowl (or the same one, if you feel like washing it first), combine condensed milk, egg yolks, and lime juice. Mix on medium speed until combined. Pour over partially baked crust and bake for 20-25 minutes more or until center is set and edges are lightly browned.

Cool on counter for half an hour, then move to refrigerator to chill. When ready to serve, sift powdered sugar on top and cut into squares.

Farmers market stir-fry

One of my favorite things about living near my office is coming home for lunch every day. It only takes me about five minutes to walk to my apartment from work, so I have 50 minutes of preparation + eating time at my disposal each day. Yes, I know...I am the luckiest person in the world.

Unfortunately, I often underestimate the amount of time it will take me to prepare a dish (tip:  do not lug out your food processor on your lunch break). I have found one method, though, that never takes me over my time limit:  stir-frying. It's quick, can be made healthy quite easily, and is a suitable cooking method for almost any food. Case-in-point: this particular stir-fry took me all of 40 minutes to prepare, photograph, and eat. And it was delicious!

My farmers market loot from last weekend

This recipe incorporates almost all the vegetables I bought at Charleston's farmers market last weekend. You can use any produce that's in season and whatever protein you want. If at all possible, don't omit the pickled vegetables; their sweet acidity contributes an important layer of flavor to the dish. I originally made them as part of this banh mi recipe, which I highly recommend.

farmers market stir-fry
serves one
per serving (as written):  283.6 cal, 7.3g fat, 46.7g carb, 7.4g fiber, 13.5g protein, 8+ weight watchers (unless you enter each ingredient separately...then it's only 6!)

ingredients:

1 tsp vegetable oil

1 clove garlic, minced

1 sliver fresh ginger, minced

kernels from 1 ear of corn

2 radishes, sliced

1 carrot, sliced

1 scallion, sliced

8 medium shrimp

about 1 tsp soy sauce

about 1 tbsp rice vinegar

sriracha to taste

diced fresh jalapeno to taste

about 1/4 c pickled carrots and radishes (recipe below)

instructions:
Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add ingredients from garlic to white part of scallion. If you're using a slower-cooking protein then shrimp, add that as well. Cook 5-10 minutes, stirring and tossing with abandon (that's the fun part, until you toss a little too enthusiastically and send corn kernels flying all over the place).

Add shrimp if using. Add soy sauce, rice vinegar, and sriracha, and stir to coat mixture evenly. Cook a minute or two longer, until all liquid has dissolved. Empty into a large bowl, cover with rest of sliced scallions, jalapenos, and pickled vegetables. Enjoy your lunch (or dinner, or late-night snack, or maybe even breakfast)!

pickled carrots and radishes
adapted from food52
makes about 1.5 c

ingredients:
1/4 lb carrots, julienned
1/4 lb radishes, sliced thin
1/2 c water
1 c apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp salt
2 tbsp sugar

instructions:
Mix all ingredients together. Let sit in refrigerator for at least an hour or as long as overnight. I used mine up in about three days, but they would have kept longer.