You know how dads are supposed to “bring home the bacon?” Well this week, my husband brought home some beets and collard greens. That’s almost the same thing as bacon, right?
Matt’s been working over at a gentleman’s house, painting a shed. As he was leaving Friday, a neighbor handed him an arm full of awesome produce. Awesome – except for beets and collard greens are two veggies our family isn’t very fond of. We’re determined to find creative ways to eat them though as we know they are very good for us. That’s where you come in. A little beet and collard green help please??
After an internet search Friday night, I made smoothies with shredded beets, pineapple, orange juice, avocado, spinach, and strawberries. They were actually pretty tasty, and the beets made them beautiful. I’m not sure my family will go for another round of them though. Tell me what you do with beets and collard greens. :)
In other produce news, I loaded my cart at the store on Saturday so that I’d have plenty to work with for our meals this week. A lady at the check-out was like, “Wow, stocking up?” I’m so used to plowing through loads and loads of food each week, I forget what my cart-fulls must look like to others. I had to tell her, “Nope, I have teenage boys. This is all for just this week.” ;)
Sorry about the picture quality. The sun was shining on our kitchen table (yay sunshine!!), which caused a glare on my plastic containers. Below, if you could see beyond the glare, you would find: Baby Spinach, Mixed Greens, Petite Carrots, Carrots, Cauliflower, Broccoli, Romaine Lettuce, Raspberries, Zucchini, Asparagus, Clementines, Cabbage, and Sweet Peppers.
I’m excited that at least for right now, our Wal-Mart and another small local grocery store in town are carrying more organic varieties of produce for very reasonable prices. Here are the meals we’ll be eating this week:
Sunday – Matt teaches a college age Bible class on Sunday mornings, and I try to take home-baked goodies to share with the students. This week I’m taking Apple Crisp. We’re having company after church, so I’m making Chicken Noodle Soup, a plate of Carrots, Sweet Peppers, and Cucumbers, Olives, Dill Pickles, and Butterscotch Bars. Tonight there is a church fellowship, so I’m taking two Apple Pies. (Yes, we still have lots of apples at our house!)
The rest of the week, here’s what we’ll be working with:
Breakfast
- Bacon Cheese Muffins
- Blueberry Coffee Cake
- Cranberry White Chocolate Chip Breakfast Cookies
- Crepes with fruit and/or Cream Cheese Filling
- Scrambled Cheesy Eggs
- Pumpkin Pie (will be a great breakfast since I’ll be cutting down the sugar in this recipe quite a bit)
Lunch
- Hamburger meat cooked with cabbage and onions, served on a bun
- Corn Dogs (hoping to make extra to stash in the freezer)
- Chili with cheese on baked potatoes
- Chicken Salad
- Hamburger Sauerkraut Dip with chips
- Leftovers
Dinner
- Chicken Pot Pie
- Cheeseburger Macaroni
- Flounder (Thanks to you, we tried this last week. It turned out ugly, but delicious!)
- Italian Pasta Bake
- Homemade Pizza
- Salmon Patties with rice
Fruits and Veggie Sides and Snacks
- Clementines
- Apples
- Raspberries
- Cheesy Cauliflower Cakes (If you haven’t tried these yet, you should. Amazing!)
- Sweet Potato Fries
- Roasted Asparagus
- Spaghetti Squash
- Green Beans
- Peas
- Mixed Greens
- Spinach
- Stir fried broccoli, carrots, asparagus, and zucchini
- Applesauce
- Homemade Dill Pickles
- Fresh Pineapple
- Beets and Collard Greens, apparently ;)
Rhonda says
Beets taste much less “beety” when you roast them till they’re a little caramelized around the edges. They will actually taste quite sweet. Cut them up in chunks and toss them with oil and some roughly chopped onions, if you like them, and roast till tender and brown around the edges , then sprinkle with sea salt.
Sheila H. says
I second this comment and like to add rosemary and butter to the mix to reduce the “earthiness” even more.
Sandra says
try joy the bakers chocolate beet cake its incredible u dont taste the beets and it is incredibly mosit
Hilary says
I’ve never tried it but I bet your boys would like fries and beet ketchup!
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/sweet-potato-strings-with-beet-ketchup-recipe.html
Adrian says
If you still have the tops of the beets, cook those in chicken broth (or water, but chicken broth is better I think) until wilted. Delicious! You can do the same with collard greens too I believe. Other than that, you could try roasting those chopped beets with paprika (any other spice would work though) and coated with oil in foil at 350 for about a half hour.
charla says
I make kale chips for my kids wash and dry toss with olive oil ,salt,pepper I would think you could do the same with collards. Or sauté with olive oil onions garlic and crushed red pepper can steam them the rest of the way with a little chicken broth or water.
Patricia R. says
Sliced beets fried in butter are delicious. If you want to avoid all the bloody juice, roast them in the oven and then slice up and fry in butter. Even my 7 year old grandson loves them. They are so sweet, they don’t need anything but butter. Oh, did I mention butter? It’s a must. Yum!
Kate says
I pickle my beets. Cover them with ACV, apple cider vinegar, add salt to taste and let sit for 24 hours or so. Sometimes I will add onion slices.
Molly says
BEETS!!!!!! I love beets. LOVE beets. Last night we had them roasted (olive oil, salt, pepper) with some homemade caesar dressing. My favorite way is roasted with lemon zest and dill. YUM.
Janice Denney says
Our favorite beet dish is Harvard Beets — beets in a yummy sweet and sour sauce.
Courtney says
Roasted beets are so delicious! We eat them in salads almost every single day. Our favorite is a salad with beets, goat cheese, and balsamic dressing. Yum!
Heidi says
I second that salad combination with the roasted beets. Sliced apples are also a nice addition.
stephanie says
Definitely roast them along with some other root veggies, they are really good that way. You could even take the leftover beat puree and add it to muffins, pancakes, waffles, smoothies, etc. It makes the pancakes, etc. look sooo pretty. You can steam or sauté the beet greens, so do not throw them away. You could even add the beet greens to any soup that calls for spinach or kale. A great thing to do with the collard greens other than cooking them with hamhock is to use the larger collard leaves as a base for a sandwich wrap. Then fill the inside of the sandwich with whatever you like. Oh and another great thing to add cooked beats to is hummus, it is absolutely beautiful and if you do not add too much it still tastes just like regular hummus. Of coarse if all else fails you could cook it up and give it to an animal/pet if you have one.
angela says
Internet search for beet hummus. We enjoy this as a dip and on hamburgers. Collards sre great sauteed and sometimes I get fancy and serve them stacked up with eggs Benedict. Search for blender hollandaise sauce. Easiest best way to make it.
Melissa says
My son and I love beets, but my daughter and husband don’t. It’s a balancing act. Lately, I’ve been making brown sugar glazed beets. Steam cubes of beets and make the glaze. It has brown sugar (or sucanat), orange juice, butter, salt and pepper. They are so good and sweet! The complete recipe is at eatingwell.com.
Michelle says
We like beets pickled or roasted. The trick to good collard greens is to blanch them before cooking them! We love collard greens here. We eat them a variety of ways but our new favorite is with potatoes and eggs. Blanch the greens, boil some baby potatoes, put both in a pan with some olive oil, garlic, and plenty of salt. Smash the potatoes and cook to make a hash, then serve it with fried eggs on top. Yum!!
Shelley says
I make and can pickled beets every year, and we like them roasted, but I have been making tons of beet kvass lately. It’s so easy and super healthy for you… purifies the blood, strengthens the liver, and since it’s lacto-fermented you get plenty of probiotics from it along with enzymes. I love the taste of it also, sort of a salty, earthy flavor.
Bethany says
We love beets cooked with some butter and salt. Simple and delicious! My husband was never a fan of beets, but really enjoys them this way. Also, the website weelicious.com has many beet recipes, from pancakes to veggie dip! I hope you guys come to love beets!
Stacy says
I love to roast them and put them in salad. I lacto-ferment them to make pickles. Beet Velvet cupcakes are quite yummy. As for collard, being a Southern girl, I like to slow cook them with some bacon and onions, then serve them with pinto beans and cornbread.
Delaney says
Beets! I love to slice them thinly into rounds and toss them with a little bit of honey, tarragon, and oil. Sprinkle sea salt over them and roast them and they’re like candy!
They’re also good roasted with nothing but a touch of cinnamon.
Angel says
Here in the south this is how collard greens are prepared most often.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/patrick-and-gina-neely/ginas-best-collard-greens-recipe.html
Talia says
Collard greens are delicious cooked the right way. I love the 100 days of real food recipe, except I caramelize the onions. Yum!
Kristin says
I’ve made this and it was delicious! http://www.simplebites.net/a-recipe-for-unprocessed-dark-chocolate-beet-bundt-cake/
Michelle says
Beets can be used in smoothies, you won’t notice them if you use small amounts. I often make smoothie packs–all smoothie materials in 1 bag–and put them in the freezer. You do need to roast your beets before hand. But the smoothie bags allow you to put them in the freezer and spread out the beets. I have seen recipes for beets cupcakes, pancakes, brownies, etc.
For collards…. small leaves can work as your greens in smoothies. By small I mean no bigger than the size of your fist. Larger ones will need to be cooked. I hate to say it, but the longer they are cooked the better they taste. Salt & vinegar help too. You can try hiding small amounts of them in spaghetti sauce, lasagna, stuffed shells, chili, soups, etc. But I’d cook them a bit first. Old southern recipes are usually the best for taste–maybe not healthiest. But there is a reason they have been used for years.
Wendy says
The only thing I really use beets for is borsch which I learned to make when I lived in Ukraine for four years. If someone gave me a bunch of beets, I would probably peel them, shred them, and can or freeze to add to borsch when I make it. I’d be happy to send you my recipe if you are interested. By the way, you don’t really notice the beets in the soup and yet it wouldn’t be right without them.
BUSY MOM IN AL says
A older southern lady taught me to cook down cabbage with collards and it makes them much easier for kids. We add chopped bacon to the pot too! Yum.
BUSY MOM IN AL says
Oh yeah, also a scoop of mayonnaise at the end before serving helps too!
stephanie says
So I do not have a recipe for the beet hummus. I adapted it from a recipe I found on the internet called sweet potato hummus. I hope that helps, it is really good and so pretty. It just makes you happy when you eat it.
Lisa says
Sorry! I temporarily lost my mind and hit ‘reply’ and sent you an email! :-/ Anyway I LOVE pickled beets!! Also, can you please elaborate on hamburger meat with cabbage and onions?! PLEASE!!
Mary says
I LOVE beets! Love them fixed (al)most any way: steamed with butter, salt, and pepper, roasted then sliced hot with butter, Harvard beets, pickled beets (great memories of probably several thousand quarts canned with my mom as I was growing up), cold in a salad. I have recipes for beet chips (made like a potato or sweet potato chip), and beet French fries, but have not tried them just because I like beets these simple ways so well. No doubt they are very good too. One important beet caution: if you come across a recipe for “sour cream beets” I recommend taking a pass on that one. We had “sour cream beets” at a family dinner several years ago and you should have seen the faces–priceless! Not one positive reaction in a family of beet lovers and good cooks. We didn’t waste them, but it was tough to get them eaten up. The story of the sour cream beets is now a repeated family tale. Sour cream beets = AAAACK!!
Lisa says
Boil or roast beets, peel them and slice them and then you can pickle them or put them on salads. You can also melt a couple of tablespoons of butter, add a couple of teaspoons of sugar and the juice of a lemon, and add your cooked beet slices and cook it until the beets are glazed.
Vickie Houser says
I eat pickled beets all the time. They are delicious and easy to make too. When I make them myself, I use a Kosher Dill Pickle recipe. You can’t go wrong with pickled beets.
Never had collard greens, but I do grow and eat turnip greens. I think they might be similar. I like them steamed with a little lemon juice or cooked with a bit of bacon or ham. Serve them up with rice and fish (or ham). The baby greens are not bad fried with onion and served with eggs.
Brighid says
I’m surprised no one mentioned Hoppin’ John as a way of using up the greens. I’ve also made canned pickled greens but I’m not sure how they’ll turn out. (I’m waiting for a bit before opening them up.)
Beet greens steamed a bit and then cooked with eggs should be good. I make this with kale and sprinkle shredded cheddar on it. I just dump the greens with a bit of olive oil and a couple of tablespoons of water in the pan with a cover to steam them.
Carol says
Being a southern girl, I would like to get in this conversation. I have fond childhood memories of frequently eating store bought canned beets with our home canned green beans as part of our Sunday lunch. We just opened the can, drained the liquid, poured vinegar( apple cider or red wine ) over them and then topped our green beans with them. I think my dad added chopped onions or peppers sometime, too, to the beets in vinegar. But that may not be so helpful with fresh beets. I have little to no experience with fresh beets.
On the other hand, collards are a treasured food in our family (my youngest is still learning to appreciate them) and I have a good bit of experience with them. Recently I cooked them with a ham bone I had in my freezer. Place the ham bone in a large pot with 2 or 3 inches of water and start it simmering while you carefully wash the collards. Add salt to the wash water if there are bugs you need to get rid of. As I get some washed, I start to cut them into the pot. As they wilt, continue to add cut collards, stirring to get the raw collards to the bottom of the pot. When all the collards are added, salt to taste. There should be several inches of liquid in the pot so that there is plenty of liquid when they are done. They don’t have to be fully covered with water, though. Add water, if needed, at this point, and bring to a boil. Then turn down to simmer until done, around 20-30 minutes. When I turn them down to simmer I like to lay a few tender pods of whole okra on top. Serve with cornbread! I wish I could cook you some.
Carol says
Better Homes and Gardens November 2014 issue has a Savory Collard Greens recipe that describes the process a little better than I did and it sounds like it would be a similar result. I don’t add the crushed red pepper and vinegar (or something similar) as we would usually add these individually at the table according to preferences.
Jenny Moore says
I Just Saute Greens With Fresh Garlic Until Wilted But Still Firm . I Don’t Like Them Mushy!! They Are Delicious. Even My Southern Raised Husband Likes Them!!
Amy says
Hi! My family loves sautéed beets with balsamic vinegar. I usually steam them in a fry pan with the lid on to speed up the cooking process then add a little butter and some balsamic vinegar and salt and pepper to taste and sauté them. We like them strong so I often add more balsamic at the end and let them sit in the juices for a few minutes before serving. I also can throw as much onion in as I want for extra healthiness and no one really knows the difference since it all turns purple and is soaked in vinegar. You could also add a little honey to enhance the sweetness if that is your taste rather than the saltier flavor. It is so good and my 4 year old claims that beets cooked this way are her favorite food as strange as that sounds. :)
Cassie says
I am boring and always eat collards the same way. After washing the leaves I stack them and roll them into a bundle, then slice them really thin to make little collard strips. Sautee onion and garlic in some butter, when that’s soft add the collards and cook with the lid on for just a few minutes so they’re still crunchy. Serve that way, or deglaze the pan with heavy cream.
Cassie says
Also I love pickled beets. Scrub the beets and boil them whole. When they’re cooked the skins will peel right off, then slice them. Put sliced beets and onions in a container, cover with the cooking liquid and vinegar, salt and pepper to taste, store in the fridge and serve them cold in a few days.
kathy says
Yes, the chocolate cake recipe I have is awesome. It was my son’s birthday cake at age 2 and 3. Very moist and fairly healthy when you use your flour and honey. Otherwise in a smoothie or on a salad.
Sheila H. says
A good use for collards is also this fantastic meal.
http://asquirrelinthekitchen.com/aip-paleo-breakfast-skillet-with-bison-bacon-and-pomegranate-seeds/
Karen says
Sorry all, but we just are not a beet eating family. However, I do hate to waste them when we find ourselves on the receiving end of beets. I dry them, and then put them in the blender for homemade beet powder. Then I can add it to smoothies or sauces or even use it to color baked goods at Christmas or Valentine’s Day.
Kelly says
I’m in Australia. We call them beetroots. A hamburger is not complete with beetroot on it!!
My favourite bagged salad from the supermarket has raw grated beetroot in it, and beetroot leaves (among other things!)
Randi says
Beets – oven roasted and served with butter and salt! Sweet and delicious!
Collard greens – good luck with that! LOL!
Abigail says
My husband grew up in Kenya, and there they call collard greens “sukuma wiki”, which means “to push through the week”, because they use them to make their meat last through the week. I use this recipe to make sukuma wiki for my family: http://thenoshery.com/2010/09/25/a-dish-from-kenya-sukuma-wiki-with-chapati/
sally says
You can make pesto out of the collar greens. I have done it in the past and really liked it. Really, garlic and cheese make anything better.
Jill says
I concur with everyone that has suggested roasting them with olive oil and salt and/or herbs. I’ve also made chocolate beet cake and it’s delicious.
I’ve also made potato pancakes with beets. I prefer to shred my potatoes for a more latke texture and this has worked well with beets. And if you slice them thin and fry them in hot oil, pull out to drain and immediately salt while hot they make AWESOME chips (like potato chips but beets). Yum!
TINA szymoniak says
Hi Laura,
Here’s a recipe for collards or any greens that my five children, my husband and I can eat two large iron skillets full of at one meal. Brown 8 Oz pkg of nitrate free, turkey bacon in 1 stick of butter in a large iron skillet. Once browned add washed, torn greens to over flowing. Then maybe add 1/4 cup of water and cover of cook until tender and water is evaporated. Keep an eye on them and add a little water if necessary. Yummy!
Christine says
My family eats beets raw, in a salad. It’s great in a taco salad, where the strong flavor of beef and taco seasoning tone down the beets. Our most favorite salad is beet and apple salad. Very simple – 1 raw beet peeled and chopped into mince-size*, add to a bowl. 1 granny smith apple with the peel on and chopped into mince-size*, add to the same bowl. Mix together with fresh orange juice and serve. *If you don’t keep or have orange juice in your house, add a clementine or other small orange to your chopper when you chop the beets and apples, and you’ll get enough juice that way! This goes great with chicken, turkey, pork, and fish, and has even been our “cranberry sauce” at Thanksgiving a few times!
Sabrina says
Umm…I say give them to someone who likes beets =) (We think they’re disgusting) I’ve tried peeling them to get rid of the dirt taste but ugh…just can’t stand them. Good luck!
Ashleigh says
I love beets! Roasted and peeled, then cut into small cubes with goat cheese and a balsamic vinaigrette over spinach salad. Or they are great raw: peel and shred equal parts beets and carrots add oil, vinegar, salt and pepper to taste. I’ve also added them to scalloped potatoes before (alternating layers of potatoes and beets) and it came out great.
Pam says
Ever since we adopted 3 of our kids from Russia, I learned to love beets. I love them in soup (Borsch has be come a favorite of mine… but it must be beefy and full of potatoes), or eaten together with potatoes. Here’s a favorite potato salad of ours that I call Russian Potato Salad. I don’t even think of the beets as beets in it, but more like potatoes. http://treasureinanearthenvessel.blogspot.com/2014/08/russian-potato-salad.html
Jennifer says
If you love pickled veggies, you will like beet pickles, just google it. I grew up loving beets so much that at one time I was turned off of beets, but now as a grown up I love them once again (just won’t eat so many). Also you could try a beet cake, or like my mom always did, dehydrate little slices. Once dry it tastes like candy and it is so good for you. (That is how I got sick of beets). My Mom used to make ice cream pails full. They were good ! When we get a dehydrator someday I’m going to try them again that way. One more thing that is really good is beet jelly. Use the one with out the red jello, it doesn’t need it since the beets already give out a natural color.
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