The Gluten-Free Homemaker

I have never been a fan of beets.  Because my mom likes beets, I have eaten them before.  However, until last week, I had never cooked them myself.  I received a small bunch of beets in my CSA box, and I was determined to do something with them (besides give them away).    If you don’t know what CSA stands for, look for my explanation on Thursday.



I looked at a few recipes and decided that honeyed beets sounded good, and I thought the honey might help my family to like them better.  I combined ingredients and amounts from several recipes and came up with the one below.  As expected, my family was skeptical about the beets, but they’ll try anything once.  And, as expected, everyone but my pickiest eater liked them. At first my husband said I had ruined them with the honey sauce (I didn’t even know he liked beets!), but then he gave them a good try and was soon reaching for seconds, admitting that I didn’t ruin them after all.

Honeyed Beets

• 6 small beets (about 1 pound)
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 Tb. butter (or substitute)
• 2 Tb. lemon juice
• 2 tsp. corn starch
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/4 c. honey
• 2 tsp. fresh parsley

Wash and trim the beets.  Leave about 2 inches of the stem and do not cut the root. 




Pressure cook:  Add about 1/2 water to the bottom of your pot.  Use a steaming trivet or basket and cook the betts under high pressure for 10 -12 minutes.  Mine were small, so I started with 8 minutes, but ended up cooking them for a total of 12 minutes.

Boil:  You can also cook the beets in 6 c. boiling water with 1 tablespoon vinegar added to preserve the color and 1 teaspoon salt.  Cook 40 – 50 minutes until tender.

Steam:  Place water in the bottom of a pot.  Use enough to cover the bottom of the pot well (1/2 inch) but not enough to touch the bottom of the steamer basket.  Place whole beets in the basket, cover, and heat on high until the water is steaming.  Reduce the heat and cook for 40 – 50 minutes until tender.  Keep an eye on the pot and add more water if needed.

After beets are cooked, run cold water over them.  Remove the skin, root, and stem.  Slice the beets and cut into long pieces, or simply chop them.



In a saucepan, cook the onion in melted butter until tender.  Combine the lemon juice and corn starch and add it to the onions along with the salt and honey.  Cook until boiling and slightly thickened.  Stir in the beets mixing gently and heat until the beets are hot through.  Transfer to a serving dish and garnish with fresh parsley.



For more delicious recipes visit  Tasty Tuesday, Tempt My Tummy Tuesday, Delicious Dishes, and Friday Foodie Fix.

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Labels: vegetables and side dishes