She's got the beet...

Let me present to you the best oat combination I've had thus far:


Banana bread oats (featuring my biology notes)

Ingredients
- 1/2 cup rolled oats
- 1/2 cup water & 1/2 cup almond milk
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp each ginger & nutmeg
- 1 tsp flax
- 1/2 banana
- 1-2 tbsp plain soy yogurt
- 1-2 tbsp chopped walnuts

Instructions
- Cook oats in water, almond milk and vanilla.
- Just before taking the pot off the burner, add in spices and banana. Mix until combined and banana begins to melt slightly.
- Mix in yogurt.
- Top with walnuts and flax and enjoy!

Now, the real reason for the post: beets.
No, not the type that will bleed all over everything. I'm talking golden beets - little balls of sunshine with a subtle earthy and sweet flavor. This is the first time I've tried them and they've already bumped up onto "Krystina's favorite vegetable" list.

It was pretty daunting then I bought these babies at Whole Foods. Why? because they're HUGE. The stems and leaves, anyway. They took up half my grocery bag. I didn't know what to do with them or how they would taste, but I braved the new vegetable anyway. Since buying or cooking beets may be something you're apprehensive about, let me give you a brief tutorial on how to make them delicious:

1)
- Cut off the leaves and stems. DO NOT DISCARD, THEY TASTE DELICIOUS. Just run them in cool water to remove dirt.
- Scrub the beets until they're nice and clean.

2) I don't have a picture of this, oops. Well, cut off the tops even more than in the first picture, so that the stems are completely removed and the beets can stand upright. Cut the bottoms off as well. Put them on a baking sheet and rub them with olive oil. Bake at 350 for 75 minutes.

3)
Tada! Perfectly roasted golden beets. Allow them to sit for at least 10 minutes so they don't burn your fingers and the skin begins to pull away. Then take off the skin, slice, and create something delicious.

Like what, you say? Oh, I'll show you:


Roasted golden beets with lemon-herb yogurt sauce; whole wheat couscous and sauteed beet greens
Serves 1-2

Ingredients

For the beets & sauce
- 2 roasted yellow beets (see tutorial)
- 1/4 cup unsweetened plain soy yogurt
- 1 tbsp parsley
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- S&P, to taste

Instructions
- Thinly slice beets and arrange on a plate.
- In a small bowl, combine remaining ingredients. Drizzle over beets (artistically, if you will).

For the beet greens
- Greens off one bunch of yellow beets
- 1 shallot
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp basil
- Pinch of red pepper flake
- S&P, to taste.

Instructions
- In a medium pan, heat up olive oil. Add shallot and garlic and saute until translucent and slightly caramelized.
- Add beet greens. Stir and allow to cook until wilted. Season as necessary.

The couscous is super simple. Boil 1/2 cup water, take the pot OFF the heat and add in 1/4 cup couscous. Let sit for at least 5 minutes or until all the water is absorbed.

Place (or if you're me, plop) the couscous and beet greens in the center of the plate. Top with a bit more sauce. Enjoy!


There are no words to describe the deliciousness of this dish. Just try it and I promise you'll understand.