Serving Size: 4

Ingredients:

• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 4 medium large parsnips, peeled and cut in chunks
• 1 & 1/2 cups risotto rice
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 2 cups vegetable bouillon
• 100 grams walnuts, chopped
• 4 large beets, peeled and boiled
• 10 sprigs thyme
• 2 tablespoons vegan margarine
• 1/5 cup soy yogurt or soy cream
• salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Peel the onions and cut in small pieces.
2. Peel and cut parsnips in medium bite-sized chunks.
3. Heat the oil in a large frying pan and saute the onions until glassy.
4. Add the risotto rice and mix to coat the rice with the oil.
5. Add the white wine and cook until the wine has been absorbed.
6. Add the parsnips and half of the vegetable bouillon and cook, stirring until the bouillon has been absorbed.
7. Slice the cooked beets.
8. Heat the vegan margarine in a second frying pan.
9. Add the chopped walnuts and lightly toast.
10. Remove the leaves from the thyme sprigs and add to the walnuts.
11. Add the beet slices and cook at light heat to warm the beets.
12. When the risotto is soft, add the soy yogurt and mix well.
13. Serve the risotto on a large serving platter with the bets and walnuts on top of the risotto and garnished with a dollop of soy yogurt, a few walnut pieces and thyme leaves.

We baked the beets first. Once they had cooled enough to handle, we sliced them and then cut the the slices with a snowflake cookie cutter to make a special treat for the holidays. That could even be a fun task for kids to do. We used fresh cranberry sauce as an added garnish, although that was not so needed. I would also suggest a pinch of salt to the sauce. This makes a very nice side dish, no matter what time of the year.

Yield: 2 servings

Ingredients:

• 1 medium beet, peeled, cooked and pureed
• 1 ripe mango, peeled, stone removed and cut into pieces
• 2 cups mango juice
• 12-15 mint leaves
• 1 teaspoon agave syrup
• 1 lime, juiced

Directions:

1. Place the pureed beet in a blender.
2. Add the mango pieces, mango juice, lemon juice and mint.
3. Whiz to a smooth consistency.
4. Taste, if it is not sweet enough, add 1 teaspoon of agave syrup.
5. You may want to add a bit more lemon juice also.

We did a few adjustments to make it vegan. We used plain soy yogurt in place of the no fat yogurt and did not add any dry milk solids. It made a very nice appetizer. It was easy to make as we had beets on hand. Perhaps you would find this tasty as well.
Here is the link: http://recipes.prevention.com/Recipe/borscht-dip-with-belgian-endive.aspx

Yield: 8-12 slices

Ingredients:

• 8-12 slices whole grain bread or baguette
• 2-3 medium beets, cooked
• 1 cup home made vegan ‘blue cheese’ (ingredients and instructions below)
• 3 tablespoons in olive oil to brush the bread
• 1 tablespoon agave or maple syrup to drizzle on the bread
• thyme for seasoning and garnishing

for the vegan ‘blue cheese’:

• 1/4 cup cashew nuts, chopped
• 1 cup millet, cooked
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons tahini
• 1-2 tablespoons white miso
• 2 teaspoons cider vinegar
• 4-6 tablespoons nutritional yeast
• 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
• pinch nutmeg
• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 teaspoon fresh chives, chopped

Directions:

Prepare the vegan ‘blue cheese’ first or a day or two ahead of time.

to make the vegan ‘blue cheese’:

1. Put the cooked millet in a food processor and pulse to make a smooth paste.
2. Add the chopped cashews and pulse again.
3. Add the tahini, lemon juice and miso and again pulse.
4. Add the seasonings and rest of the ingredients and pulse to blend.
5. Taste and season accordingly.
6. We found it to be perfect at this stage.

This recipe remains as a smooth spread. It can be thinned to make a nice salad dressing (I would use plain soy milk to thin). The recipe can keep in the refrigerator in an air-tight container for 3-4 days.

to make the bruschetta:

1. Slice the bread and toast or grill.
2. While the slices of bread are toasting, slice the beets in medium thin slices.
3. Place the toasted bread slices on a cookie sheet.
4. Lightly brush the toasts with olive oil and then drizzle (about 1 teaspoon per bread) a bit of agave or maple syrup along the top. Not all over – just lightly drizzled here and there.
5. Place the beet slices on the bread, and a generous dollop of vegan ‘blue cheese’ on top of the beets.
6. Sprinkle the top with fresh thyme leaves.
7. Place in the oven to grill for a few minutes to lightly brown the tops and warm.

Notes:

We are quite enthusiastic about this tasty homemade ‘blue cheese’ spread. It uses no soy products and is very easy to make. It tasted very much like what we remember ‘blue cheese’ to be like.

Ingredients:

for the salad:

• 5-6 medium beet
• 2 pink grapefruit
• 1/2 cup candied pecans (see below)
• 2 Belgian endive
• handful rucola
• handful watercress

for the dressing

• 3 tablespoons olive or walnut oil
• 1/4 cup berry vinegar (raspberry, blackberry etc.)
• 2 tablespoons berry syrup or agave syrup
• 2 teaspoons mild mustard
• pinch salt and pepper

for the candied pecans:

• 2 tablespoons maple syrup or agave
• 1 tablespoon sugar

Directions:

to make the candied pecans:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 F / 163 C.
2. Put the syrup in a bowl and add the pecans stir to mix well.
3. Place the pecans on a cookie sheet prepared with baking parchment or silicone baking sheet.
4. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes.
5. Remove from the oven and turn the pecans out onto a non-stick baking parchment or a 2nd silicone baking sheet. Make sure the pecans are not sticking to each other.
6. Allow to cool and harden.

to make beet chips:

1. Use 1 beet to make beet chips.
2. Wash and peel that beet.
3. Slice very thinly with a mandolin.
4. Place on an oiled cookie sheet.
5. Spray the beets on the sheet with oil and sprinkle with
6. Sprinkle with salt and place in a preheated oven at 325 F / 163 C to bake for 10 minutes.
7. Turn the beet chips over and bake for another 10 minutes.
8. When they come out of the oven, they will still be soft but will crisp up as they cool.

to roast the beets:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 F / 190 C .
2. Scrub the beets well. I prefer to peel them as they have a more consistent surface when they have been peeled.
3. Place the beets in a baking dish and drizzle olive oil over the surface of the beets.
4. Place a lid or aluminum foil on top and bake in the oven for 40-60 minutes (in the meantime continue with the other ingredients).
5. At 25 minutes stir and turn the beets. Perhaps also prick one and test for done-ness.
6. When the beets are done, remove from the oven and allow to cool.

to prepare the other salad ingredients:

1. Wash the Belgian endive and slice the bottom end off. This will make it easier to separate each of the leaves.
2. Wash the rucola and remove the long stems.
3. Wash the watercress and separate the individual leaves.
4. Prepare the grapefruits.
5. Slice each end from the grapefruit and then slice the rind or skin from around the grapefruit, as you do an apple.
6. Cut the sections of the grapefruit from the grapefruit, being careful to have as many whole sections as possible and not break them.

to make the salad:

1. Arrange a few Belgian endive leaves on each plate.
2. Ad a few rucola leaves and watercress leaves.
3. If the beets are small, place a beet or 2 on each plate. If the beets are larger, you will want to halve or quarter the beets, giving each plate 2-4 pieces.
4. Place 4 or 5 grapefruit sections around on the plate and sprinkle a few pecans here and there.
5. Make the dressing by mixing the ingredients together and pouring into a carafe.
6. Sprinkle a bit of dressing on the salad, or serve the salad with the dressing in a carafe for individuals to help themselves.

Notes:

Roasting the beets brings out a sweetness that enhances this recipe.

Serving Size: 4

Ingredients:

• 3-4 medium beets
• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves
• 1 cup pomegranate seeds

for the dressing:

• 2 tablespoons pomegranate concentrate
• 2-3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons sambal ulek
• 2 tablespoon walnut oil
• 1-2 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
• pinch salt

Directions:

1. Cook the beets in your preferred manner – boiled or roasted.
2. Peel when cooled.
3. If you have a spiralizer, you can make shoestrings or spaghetti lengths. Otherwise, dice the peeled beets in small cubes.
4. Place the prepared beets in a large serving bowl.
5. Whisk the dressing ingredients together in a small bowl.
6. Chop the cilantro leaves.
7. Add the pomegranate seeds and cilantro to the beets.
8. Drizzle the dressing over the salad and gently toss to mix.

Notes:

This salad would work well with raw beets, for those that enjoy completely raw salads.

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Serving Size: 8

Yield: 1 cake

Ingredients:

for the beetcake:

• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup bitter cocoa powder
• 1&1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• pinch salt
• 3 egg substitutes (I used “No Egg” Substitute it is similar to Ener-G)
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1&1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1&1/2 cups fresh beets, cooked and pureed (about 3 large beets)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

for the filling:

• 1/2 cup raspberry jam

for the frosting:

• 1 cup vegan margarine, room temperature
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons raspberry jam

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Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 F /190 C.
2. Oil and flour a 7 inch /18 cm spring form.
3. In one bowl, sift the flour, cocoa, baking powder, egg substitute powder and salt.
4. In a second bowl, puree the cooked beets.
5. Add the oil and sugar and vanilla and mix well.
6. Add the beet mixture to the flour mixture and mix with a spoon or spatula.
7. If the mixture is too thick, add 1/4 cup of water or beet juice. It should be a thick batter similar to brownie mix.
8. Spread the batter in the prepared cake pan and place in the preheated oven to bake for 40-50 minutes. Test for doneness with a toothpick or if the center of the cake springs back.
9. Allow the cake to cool for 10 minutes before removing from the spring form, then allow to cool completely on a rack before cutting in half and frosting.
10. When the cake has cooled, slice the cake in half.
11. Spread the raspberry jam in the center of the bottom half of the cake and evenly spread over the cake.
12. Place the top half of the cake back on the cake.

to make the frosting:

1. Mix the powdered sugar with the vegan margarine.
2. Add 1 tablespoon of raspberry jam. If you wish a deeper color, add a 2nd tablespoon of jam. Mix well.
3. Frost the cake using a knife or spatula.
4. Carefully transfer the cake from the cooling rack to a serving plate.

Notes:

This cake is so tasty, it really doesn’t need filling or frosting, as an alternative, you can dust it with powdered sugar.

It has the earthy flavors of beets, with the mild sweetness of apricots and orange juice. Perked up with the flavors of onions, garlic and cumin. Altogether, this flavor packed soup that is really tasty. It can also be halved for a smaller amount. We do hope you give it a try and enjoy it as much as we did.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 head red cabbage, thinly sliced
• 1 Tbs. salt
• 2 Tbs. vinegar
• 1 large beet, peeled and grated
• 1 pear, peeled and sliced
• walnuts, chopped
• 2 Tbs. rice wine vinegar
• 3 Tbs. walnut oil
• 1 Tbs. agave or maple syrup
• 1 inch nob ginger, peeled and grated
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. To “wilt” the red cabbage, slice it in very fine slices.
2. Sprinkle the red cabbage with 1/4 tablespoon of salt and 2 tablespoons of vinegar and mix well in a bowl.
3. Strongly kneed the red cabbage and allow it to sit for 30 minutes.
4. Rinse the cabbage under running water to remove the extra salt and vinegar, squeeze the extra water out and place in a large serving bowl.
5. Grate the beet and mix into the cabbage.
6. Make the vinaigrette, pour over the salad and mix well.
7. Sprinkle the walnuts on top.
8. Serve the salad with slices of pears.

Notes:

If you prefer a crunchier salad, then skip the “wilting” process of the cabbage and just serve it raw, sliced. If you prefer cooked beets, then roast or boil the beet first, then grate it.