Beetroot: harmless veg or spawn of Satan?

I’ve never actively sought out beetroot as a ‘nice thing to eat’ since primary school, where I was involved in an unfortunate incident with a fat dinner lady and a portion of the stuff. I’d never eaten anything quite so colourful before, and she wasn’t budging til it was all gone.

I actually have a friend who is so allergic to beetroot that she can’t have a meal in any establishment that has it on the menu. How restricting would that be? I have visions of her marching into kitchens and shouting, “Show me ze hands! Zat is good – no pink on ze fingers, I vill have a table for two please!”

Despite all of this, I’ve grown a row of the stuff this year:  1) because lots of people rave about how nice it is, and 2) I’m a sucker for the Wilko’s half price seed sale.

Beetroot: pre roasted

Genning up a bit on the old ‘tinterweb, I gather you can pickle them (not fancying that) or roast them (slightly more appealing). The big test will be later on today. I’ve picked four little beets ready to roast with Sunday dinner later. Aparently a bit of oil, some balsamic vinegar and a light sprinkle of black pepper is the way forward.

The jury will be out…