Roasted Beets with Herb Dressing

I’m only now coming out of my Thanksgiving vacation coma. That happens, right? You have four days off, and next thing you know you’ve been playing hours of Lego Harry Potter and have nothing to show for it. Except for maybe a lack of sleep, and a crick in your neck.

How was your Thanksgiving? Great, I hope. Most people are in a love it or hate it camp when it comes to the ol’ Turkey Day. Ours went swimmingly. I started the rolls at 7am only for them to take an hour longer than I expected, and I didn’t get to my grandma’s until nearly 11:30am. Yeast kills me sometimes. There is a reason I prefer cooking to baking, and this is a big reason. There was still plenty to do once I arrived, and a ton of food on the table. I took zero photos, and we’re all pretty bummed about that. I don’t know how I forgot. It’s food and family for goodness sake. It’s begging to be photographed.

We had a whole lot of the usuals, at least for our family — turkey, ham, mashed potatoes, homemade noodles with turkey gravy, regular stuffing, broccoli cheddar stuffing, baked beans, baked sweet potatoes, roasted carrots, baked beans, macaroni salad, potato salad, cheese stuffed celery, radishes, green onions, green and black olives, deviled eggs, cranberry sauce, and rolls. The only thing that wasn’t “normal” on the table was a roasted beet dish I decided to try.

Like I said, I like to use Thanksgiving as a place to interject something new in a sea of the usual and familiar. Particularly with vegetables. I almost brought a coconut custard pie, but know my family well. A vegetable dish would go over way better. Must be where I received my love of them. Would I eat roasted beets over a coconut custard pie? Totally likely.

Roasted beets are roasted beets are roasted beets. The really awesome part of this recipe is the dressing. Fresh herbs really kick you in the teeth, and it’s a beautiful thing. So much good flavor with every bite of beet. I really wanted to drink it by the spoonful. I definitely did. Twice. It’s fresh. It’s tangy. It really brightens a normally earthy beet. It’s not quite pickle-esque. It’s just awesome.

Inspiration: Food & Wine

Ingredients

• 3lbs beets (about three bunches of various colors)
• 1 cinnamon stick broken into 2-3 pieces
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 cup water
• 1/4 cup white wine vinegar
• 1 shallot, minced
• salt
• 1/4 cup chopped chives
• 1/4 cup chopped tarragon
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley
• Grated orange peel of one lemon
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup roasted pistachios, chopped

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 375°. Clean up the beats, chopping off the stems and rinsing the dirt off. Place them in a large baking dish with the cup of water, cinnamon stick, and bay leaves. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for at least 60 minutes until the beets are easily pierced with a fork.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the minced shallot, pinch of salt, and vinegar. Allow it to sit for at least 10 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients except for the pistachios. Whisk to incorporate.

When the beets are done cooking, allow them to cool, peel the skins, and slice into rounds. Arrange the beets on a platter and spoon the dressing over the top of them. Top the beets with the pistachios.

Serve at room temperature.