Oh, how the times have changed.
If you told me five years ago that I'd be recommending that you eat beets in any form, I would have laughed in your face. But here I am, about to tell you why you need to make beet pancakes- and soon.
This weekend, I had my first experience cooking with beets. Hubs brought home four beets for me from our farmer (Hilton) and I knew it was time to experiment. Is it weird that I am not ready to eat a plain roasted beet, and that I'd rather put it in a pancake first? Weird or not, that's what I did. I roasted those babies up, trimmed and pureed them (all with GLOVED hands, which I highly recommend unless you want stained beet fingers), and mixed them up into my batter.
The verdict? Sweet and delicious. Hubs thought they could use a little extra syrup, but I didn't think the earthiness of the beets came on too strong. The little guy enjoyed them, too (that means he actually took a few bites and didn't run the other way asking for M-I-L-K).
If you're new to beets, too, I would encourage you to start with this recipe. It's a fairly safe introduction into the world of beets. Some day soon, I hope to face my fears and actually eat a beet on its own.. but until then, I'll be sitting down to a plate of these sweet, pink cakes.
P.S. Like most pancake recipes, these are freezable!
Sweet Beet Pancakesby Oven Love, adapted from Weelicious
Ingredients:
- 1 Cup All Purpose Flour
- 3/4 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
- 3 Tbsp Light Brown Sugar
- 1 Tbsp Baking Powder
- 1/2 Tsp Kosher Salt
- 2 Medium Beets, roasted & pureed (about 3/4 Cups)
- 1 1/4 Cup Milk
- 1/3 Cup Plain Greek Yogurt
- 1 Large Egg
- 3 Tbsp Canola Oil
- 1 Tsp Vanilla extract
2. Place the rest of the wet ingredients in a separate bowl and whisk thoroughly to combine.
3. Add the dry ingredients into the wet and stir until just combined (you don’t want to overstir the batter — some lumps are good).
4. Drop about 2 tbsp of the pancake mixture onto a greased griddle or pan over medium heat and cook for 3 minutes on each side.
5. Serve with desired accompaniments- butter, syrup, honey or jam.
To freeze: Place the pancakes in labeled zipper bags and freeze for up to 3 months.
If you're still nervous about beets, try this - my fave beet recipe and a staple side dish in Russia. Bonus - it's vinegar-based, so it can stay in your fridge for weeks. Pull it out any time you need a side for a meal.
ReplyDeleteVinegret (spelled that way on purpose)
2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
3 - 4 medium carrots, peeled and diced
2 - 3 medium beets, peeled and diced (or a can of sliced beets, diced)
a can of petite peas (I know, I hate canned peas, too. Trust.)
2 - 4 dill pickle spears, diced
1 small white onion, diced
1/8 c white vinegar
1/8 c cold water
dill weed to taste
salt and pepper to taste
--Boil the diced carrots and potatoes together just until fork-tender. Drain and rinse with cold water to stop cooking process.
--Boil the diced beets (unless using canned) just until fork tender. Rinse repeatedly w/ cold water (they will turn your salad pink/purple no matter what, but this helps somewhat).
Put the white onion in a large bowl first. Add the other veggies, adding the pickles last. Mix the water, vinegar and dill weed and pour over the veggie mixture. Mix well. Add S&P to taste. MUCH better than the sum of its parts!!!
Variations:
http://tasterussian.com/vinegret.html
http://www.russianseason.net/index.php/2010/01/russian-vinegret/
I just came across your pancake recipe. I am going to give it a go tomorrow. We LOVE beets...in certain recipes. My daughter goes nuts for them in her "pink" hummus. It is also a pretty great recipe to try if you are unsure of your love for them! I am excited to try them like this though. If all goes well I would love to post a link to your blog :-)
ReplyDeletehttp://willworkforeskimokisses.blogspot.com/2012/03/roasted-beet-hummus.html
I make these almost weekly! I only use 1/4 cup of beets, but my kids (both under 3) LOVE them (and so do I!) Thanks!
ReplyDelete