Ain't Mis-beet-havin'

A perusal of The Messy Apron archives will indicate that it’s been a long time since I’ve complained about beets. I miss that.

It’s not that I don’t have plenty of beets from the end of the summer/fall CSA share lurking in the refrigerator, all nutritious and long-lasting…and unpalatable. Or that there won’t be more coming in the winter share boxes. Oh no, there are plenty of beets. There will always be plenty of beets.

I’m getting braver with my beets, trying to find new dishes in which to hide them, and with my latest experiment I had some fear that I might be taking things a bit too far. I worried that I was creating a conflict between good and evil on the scale of Led Zeppelin’s “The Battle of Evermore.” I was going to introduce the unholy beet to possibly the most pure and beautiful food in all the world. Yes, I took the ultimate risk. I put beets in a cake.



I started with this recipe from Cooking Light magazine. The recipe writers promised me that this would be like a carrot cake, which made good sense, since even I know that carrots and beets are a pretty good match. I wasn’t going to leave anything to chance, however, and added more flavor to the cake wherever I could. I swapped out vegetable oil in favor of butter and exchanged milk for orange juice. I also added some vanilla, extra cinnamon and orange zest. The frosting, which contained no beets, was very promising on its own, but I fiddled anyway. It called for orange zest, but, since I only had one orange and its zest sacrificed itself to the cake batter to fight the taste of the beets, I put in some Grand Marnier instead. The liqueur matched the orange in the cake, but also gave the frosting an extra air of sophistication. You could replace it with milk and put the orange zest back in if you wish.

The original recipe was for a double layer cake, but I thought that was too much pressure. If the taste was too beety to be enjoyed, that would have been too much work and too much waste, so I made half the recipe. (Besides, only two people would be eating it.) The result is one 9-inch round cake with plenty of cream cheese frosting (I halved that recipe, too).

The cake batter is quite shockingly purple-red, but bakes up golden brown. I shredded my beets using the food processor, so they were more coarsely shredded (ie, in larger pieces) than they would be if you use a box grater. The authors of the recipe suggested, “You may want to wear an apron while grating the beets because they tend to splatter.” Way ahead of you…but even armored with an apron, being up to my elbows in beet juice is pretty unappealing to me. If you use a box grater, you’re made of stronger stuff than I am.

I have to say I really like this cake. I can taste the beets, but only a little. The holiness of cake prevailed over the beets, perhaps even converted them to the side of light. The flavor of the orange pulls the beets out of the abyss and, surprisingly, keeps it from being cloyingly sweet. The frosting, which is quite sweet, but which I could nonetheless eat with a spoon, is a smooth and rich accompaniment that probably does more than its fair share of the work in making this a delicious dessert. You can hide a lot of sins and misbehavior with cream cheese frosting.

And so, I found one more reason to stop complaining about the healthy and bountiful beet. I will bake and eat this cake again. Perhaps it can even bring me to renounce my beet-hating. Well, let’s not get too excited just yet.

Beet and Orange Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Adapted from Cooking Light magazine

½ pound beets
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup dark brown sugar
¼ cup butter, melted
1 egg
1 teaspoon finely shredded orange zest
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon salt
¼ cup freshly squeezed orange juice

4 ounces cream cheese (I used reduced fat)
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons orange liqueur, such as Grand Marnier (optional)
1 ½ cups powdered sugar (aka confectioner’s sugar)

1. Prepare the baking pan: Trace the bottom of a 9-inch round cake pan onto parchment paper. Cut out the circle. Spray the sides and bottom of the inside of the pan with nonstick cooking spray (or use a generous amount of oil or butter). Place the parchment circle in the bottom of the pan and spray it with cooking spray.

2. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Trim the ends of the beets and peel off the skin. Shred the beets in a food processor or with a box grater. (You should have about 2 loosely-packed cups of shredded beets.)

3. In a large bowl or in the bowl of a heavy duty mixer fit with the paddle attachment, combine the sugar, brown sugar, melted butter and egg. Beat on medium speed until smooth. Add the orange zest, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and shredded beets. Mix until well combined.

4. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger and salt. Stir with a whisk or sift to combine. Add about 1/3 of the flour mixture to the sugar mixture and beat at medium-low speed until well combined. Add ½ of the orange juice and beat to combine. Repeat with another 1/3 of the flour mixture and the rest of the orange juice. Add the remaining flour mixture and beat to combine. Stir the batter with a spoon or rubber spatula to ensure no dry spots remain.

5. Pour or spoon the batter into the prepared baking pan and spread evenly. Bake at 350 F for 30 minutes. If you wish to test to ensure that the cake is done, insert a wooden pick into the center of the cake. It should come out without any raw batter attached.

6. Cool the cake in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Carefully invert the pan to remove the cake and peel off the parchment circle. Cool completely on the wire rack.

7. To make the frosting, in a medium bowl beat together the cream cheese, ½ teaspoon vanilla extract and orange liqueur if using with an electric mixer. Add 1 cup powdered sugar and beat slowly until the mixture is smooth. Add the remaining powdered sugar and beat until smooth.

8. Spread the frosting over the top of the completely cooled cake, all the way to the edge. Some of the frosting may dribble over the side.

Makes 8-10 servings. Store leftovers, covered, at room temperature for a few days.

Another beet and orange recipe: Black Beans with Beets and Oranges

Other recipes with hidden beets: Beet and Carrot Burgers, Potatoes Anna with Hidden Beets

Thanksgiving!

I’m all in favor of feasting. I think the best way to celebrate something, anything, is with a collaborative effort of creative culinary minds resulting in a groaning board that is quickly but gratefully dismantled by hearty eaters. My best and fondest memories are of such events, almost always with family, and occasionally with good friends. It usually seems like it’s all about the food, but cheerful chatter and lots of laughing are always a big part of the celebration, too. I’ve been fortunate that way.

I’ve never really hosted a Thanksgiving dinner for more than two people (including myself), but I contribute when I can (this year, again, I’m bringing the pumpkin pie and cranberry sauce), but I’d have to be an idiot to not recognize the effort that goes into choreographing such an event for a crowd. As difficult and perhaps stressful as that huge meal can be to put together, especially with the average Thanksgiving dinner expectations, it’s becoming just as difficult to keep genuine gratitude at the forefront of the celebration. If one were merely to watch television commercials to determine the gist of the American cultural scene of late autumn, one might think Thanksgiving is merely the kickoff of the Christmas shopping season with the Big Dinner as a carbo-load for Black Friday shopping. And this kickoff date seems in danger of creeping ever earlier (as soon as the Halloween candy and decorations are sold off at clearance prices, the Christmas stuff takes their place on the shelves). Will we soon be tricked into skipping Thanksgiving altogether because it’s not as marketable as other holidays?

I think we’re smarter than that. I think we need holidays and activity to help us through the dark and the cold and the snow of the approaching winter, but we know what they really mean at their core, and that doesn’t have to be the same thing for all of us. I think most of us know what we are fortunate to have and we are grateful for it, even if it is not the same kind of thing for which others are grateful. You don’t have to subscribe to a particular or any religion or feel that you owe someone to celebrate and give thanks.

So, I wish you a happy Thanksgiving, and hope you have a fabulous celebration. I also hope you can take some time between unfastening your tightening belt and the football game and the shopping spree to remember what is good in your life, especially the simple things. Laugh a little. Have some fun. Dig in to a good meal if possible. Offer a toast or two, or a prayer if that’s your preference. Actually say, “Thank you,” to the folks in your life who deserve it. And, for goodness sake, thank the person or persons who cooked your Thanksgiving dinner!

While it’s probably best if you already have your Thanksgiving meal planned by now, here are a few recipes from The Messy Apron archives that I think would go well on a Thanksgiving table.
Broccoli Stem and Kohlrabi Slaw
Cranberry Sauce (the can is out of the question!)
Crunchy Cabbage, Cauliflower and Apple Salad
Grandmama’s Pumpkin Pie
Red Cabbage Slaw with Apples and Cranberries
Roasted Vegetables
Spaghetti Squash Salad with Greek Flavors
Spinach Salad with Apples and Maple Walnut Vinaigrette
Sweet and Tart Broccoli Salad
Wheat Berry Salad with Roasted Vegetables and Maple Walnut Vinaigrette

And, if you’re serving people who prefer a vegetarian meal, you might consider main courses such these:
Quinoa Stuffed Squash
Winter Vegetable Galettes with Cheddar, Mustard and Caramelized Onions
Winter Squash and Leek Empanadas with Sage
Winter Squash and Onion Curry with Yogurt Sauce

Spiced and Spiked: Mulled Apple Cider

And so the season begins. The season of fighting off the gloom and depression of the dark and cold days of winter with holidays and celebrations and gatherings and, say it with me, really great food. Many of us visit and give thanks and give gifts. Some worship, some cook, some feast, some fight, and some shop ‘til they drop. Some spice up the days to get by, while others prefer to have their holidays spiked.

I believe it’s a basic fact of human nature that we need these celebrations too keep us from going off the deep end during the late fall and winter, especially in places with excruciatingly short days and cold temperatures and snowy roads. I really think, however, that we put too much pressure on ourselves (as well as our friends and families) when it comes to these year-end celebrations. Sure, we set out to give honor and thanks to and for what is important to us, and generously wish to find the perfect gifts for loved ones or make the season brighter for those who may not have enough. But, let’s face it: we all too often make ourselves crazy in the process.

Because we need to calm down a bit to stay sane, to sit back and relax and contemplate what is meaningful to us, or what we are thankful for, or why exactly it is that we can’t stand to be in the same room with Aunt Mildred, I offer you a warm and flavorful apple cider drink for your sipping pleasure. Because we also need to spice up these darkening days, this cider is steeped with a handful of sassy spices as well as a few strips of orange peel. Because a spiked drink may be just what the nerves seem to need, there is also an optional plug of apple brandy.

This cider is quite spicy, and I really went through the cabinet in hopes of creating an especially complex flavor. I recognize that the average kitchen, even during the holidays, might not be stocked with quite so many whole spices, and I think you could leave out what you don’t have and still make something pretty good. Heck, I forgot to put the cardamom in last time I made this and, while I, tasting critically, could tell it wasn’t there, the cider was still delicious and comforting. Really, the cinnamon is the most important part and you could probably make a delightful cider without anything else added. Don’t put the added pressure on yourself of going out to gather spices in the cold.

The apple brandy (I used Apple Jack) brightens the flavors of the final beverage, and it might also serve to brighten the conversation at your next gathering. You can leave it out, and if you do, this becomes a nice drink for breakfast or an afternoon break. I tend to split the batch and spike half of it for evening relaxation and leave the rest untainted for morning or daytime sipping.

Whatever you celebrate or use as an excuse to gather over the next six weeks or so, I hope you have a pleasant and peaceful time. Spiked or just spiced, you make the call, but perhaps also take the time to sit back and sip rather than gulp in the whole holiday season while giving thanks, enjoying your loved ones and taking in some really great food.

Mulled Apple CiderThe amount of alcohol in this drink is modest. Adjust it to your liking or leave it out entirely.

8 cups (2 liters) fresh apple cider
6 cardamom pods, crushed
3-4 small chunks crystallized ginger (about 1 heaping tablespoon or 15 ml)
6 whole cloves
6 whole allspice berries
2 whole star anise
3 4-inch (about 10 cm) cinnamon sticks
1/4 inch (about 0.5 cm) chunk whole nutmeg or ¼ teaspoon (1 ml) grated nutmeg
4 1-inch (2.5 cm) wide strips orange peel
½ cup (125 ml) apple brandy, such as Calvados or Apple Jack (optional)

1. Pour the cider into a large pot. Add all of the remaining ingredients except the brandy. Cover and bring to a boil.

2. Reduce the heat and simmer gently, covered, for 30 min. Turn off the heat and let stand 30 minutes more.

3. Strain out the spices or remove them with a slotted spoon. To serve, return the cider to the heat and warm until hot. Stir in the brandy if using. Serve hot or refrigerate and rewarm as needed.

Makes 10-11 6-ounce (175 ml) servings.

Another recipe like this one: Ginger Spice Ice Cream

One year ago: Cranberry Sauce

Soup for Supper

When I made this soup, it seemed a quaint reminder of when it used to get cold this time of year, and one liked a bit of hearty soup for supper to help keep oneself warm. Though it wasn’t particularly cold outside, I happened to have lots of lovely red potatoes, many nice, large leeks, one honking huge head of Napa cabbage, and a soup recipe from the Moosewood Restaurant Daily Special cookbook. The days were getting shorter, even if they weren’t as cold as they have since become, and I was feeling a little under the weather, so soup it would be.

This soup is creamy but manages to remain light-feeling because the creaminess is provided by reduced fat cream cheese rather than cream. I also sneaked in some Gruyere cheese, which I love in cream soups with potatoes. The cheese brought along some additional richness, but not so much as to leave and oil slick on the soup. Its sharp, nutty flavor is subtle alongside the cabbage and the spices, but it’s definitely there, and is worth stirring in.

Speaking of the spices, the original recipe called for caraway, which is a no-brainer with cabbage as far as I’m concerned, but I also added some coriander seed to go along with it. I like the combination, and the coriander gives the stoic, storage-vegetable taste of cabbage and potatoes a bit of a citrusy lift. I coarsely ground whole spices, which I think results in the most flavor, and I didn’t mind the extra pop of spice that the little pieces gave to each spoonful.

I used Napa cabbage here, because that’s what I had, but the original recipe called for green cabbage. I think the Napa, which is leafier and less crunchy, may have cooked more quickly than regular green cabbage, but not so much as to require a major change in the recipe instructions. Savoy cabbage would probably also be good, although I find is flavor to be stronger, so be ready for that.

To save time and dish-washing, I used an immersion blender to puree the soup. It leaves behind some fibers and spice bits that the regular blender might pulverize, but I don’t mind if my creamy soup has a little substance as well. This was one of those simple recipes that I had a feeling I’d start making pretty often, especially if a bit of cabbage or a few potatoes need using up. If, however, I keep making it as long as that gigantic cabbage lasts, I might have my fill of the stuff until next winter.


Creamy Cabbage and Potato Soup
Adapted from Moosewood Restaurant Daily Special

While I used chicken broth in this recipe, you could use vegetable broth or water to make the soup vegetarian.

2 tablespoons butter
2 cups thinly sliced leeks, white and light green parts, well washed
½ teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
1 teaspoon caraway seeds
1 teaspoon whole coriander seeds
4 cups chopped Napa cabbage (or other green cabbage)
2 cups sliced peeled potato
3 cups chicken broth (I used fat-free reduced-sodium)
3 ounces reduced fat cream cheese
½ cup (about 2 ounces) shredded Gruyere cheese
freshly ground black pepper to taste

1. Melt the butter over medium heat in a Dutch oven or other large soup pot. Add the leeks and ¼ teaspoon salt. Cover and cook 10 minutes, lifting the lid to stir occasionally.

2. Pulse the caraway seeds and coriander seeds in a spice grinder (I use a coffee grinder) a few times until they are coarsely ground, or crush them with a mortar and pestle.

3. Add the cabbage and the coarsely ground spices to the leek mixture. Cover and cook about 5 minutes, or until the cabbage is well wilted, stirring occasionally.

4. Add the potatoes and chicken broth. Cover, bring to a boil and cook 25-30 minutes, or until all the vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally.

5. Remove the soup pot from the heat. Stir in the cream cheese and puree the soup, either with an immersion blender or in batches in a regular blender.

6. When the soup is pureed, stir in the Gruyere cheese. Taste for salt and add more and black pepper to taste. Rewarm if necessary.

Makes 4-5 servings.

Other recipes like this one: Celeriac, Potato and Wild Rice Soup, Cream of Carrot and Parsnip Soup, Sauteed Cabbage with Caraway and Cider Vinegar

One year ago: Crunchy Cabbage, Cauliflower and Apple Salad