Golden Beets, a trilogy

You should know, this is the mileage I got from two beets.  Sam found golden beets at the farmers market last week and was generous enough to share some with me. Thank you Sam!

I've been wanting golden beets ever since Spring rolled around, mostly because I've been wanting to to layer the colors of red and golden beets--I mean, can you think of a more fantastically colored vegetable?  

Here is what I did with Sam's golden beets:

1. Beet, Goat Cheese, Caramelized Onion Tart

Ingredients:

1 medium sized golden beet (or half of one enormous one)

1 medium red beet

8 sprigs of fresh thyme

1 yellow onion

1 1/2 tablespoons of butter

1 sheet of puff pastry

3 tablespoons of goat cheese

4 garlic cloves

olive oil

kosher salt

pepper

1) preheat oven to 425

2) in foil pouches, roast the beets with olive oil, slightly smashed garlic cloves, salt and pepper.  make sure to have separate pouches for the red and golden beets so the colors don't bleed

3) roast the beets for about a hour and 15 minutes or until fork tender

4) meanwhile caramelize onions by slicing them lengthwise and slowly sauteing them in the butter (try to move them minimally so that they caramelize and keep the heat low so they do not burn)

5) defrost a puff pastry sheet and cover with the caramelized onions and thyme

6) slice the roasted beets into rounds of equal thickness and layer on top of onions in a pattern

7) top with the garlic cloves that were roasted with the beets

8) crumble goat cheese on tart

9) in a 400 degree oven, bake the tart for twenty minutes

2. Golden Beet, Roasted Garlic, Mandarin Orange Salad

ingredients:

1 cup roasted and sliced beets

5 cloves of roasted garlic

1/4 cup mandarin oranges

a handful of toasted pine nuts

1/2 lemon

5 tablespoons of red wine vinegar

5 tablespoons of olive oil

2 tablespoons orange juice

1 tablespoon whole grain or dijon mustard

1. roast beets as indicated in the tart recipe and slice in wedges

2. roast garlic in a foil pouch with 1 tablespoon of olive oil for about 45 minutes or golden brown

3. toss the beets, toasted pine nuts, roasted garlic, and mandarin oranges together

4. in a separate bowl, whisk the olive oil, red wine vinegar, mustard, lemon juice and orange juice together

5. dress the beets and top with mint or cilantro

3. Pickled Golden Beets

ingredients:

1 beet

1 teaspoons whole mustard seed

1 cup white distilled vinegar

1/2 cup honey

two bay leaves

1/2 teaspoon whole cloves

2 garlic cloves

2 sprigs of thyme

1. boil the beet for 45 minutes, peel, and slice in rounds of equal thickness

2. in a saucepan bring the vinegar and honey to a boil

3. process a canning jar by putting in the oven for 10 minutes at 225 degrees

4. put the sliced beets, spices, and thyme in the processed jar

5. pour in the vinegar/honey mixture carefully into the jar. do not overfill

6. immediately close the lid tightly

7. leave for about two weeks before eating