Roasted Beet & Carrot

Besides being gorgeous, 

this combination is yummy and nutritious.

The best part of this recipe is the easy tip on roasting and peeling the skin from the beets.

Forget the days of peeling beforehand and ending up with stained fingers.

Our CSA box had these gorgeous specimens in it.

Have I mentioned how much I love fall produce?!

Don't ignore the greens either.  

We wilted the beet greens with spinach for a warm spinach salad.

They are sweeter than spinach and I look forward to getting them again so 

I can make some baby food from them.

We also use the carrot greens along with parsley and a bit of basil

along with walnuts, garlic, evoo, parmesan and a splash of lemon for a pesto.

Don't waste those greens, they are packed with nutritious deliciousness!

One last tip on greens, remove them as soon as possible as they suck

up the sugars and water from the veggie.

The longer you keep the greens on the less moist and sweet your veggies will be.

So take those greens off and use them asap.

Beet juice does stain so strip that baby down before feeding them beets.

I also rubbed a little vaseline on my hands and ran them around Peanut's mouth because

I wanted to take pictures later and he is the messiest eater ever.

Maybe I'm just paranoid :)

Also, and this is very important....

take a good look at the color of that puree 

and remember it when you are changing your little's diaper later.

I mean, it all depends on how much they eat but

I don't want you to go rushing that child into the ER for internal hemorrhaging 

when really they just had a lot of beets for lunch :)

Hey- it had to be said!

Roasted Beets & Carrots

2 medium beets, washed with the tops and tails cut off

(I just roast off all of my beets so they are ready when I want to use them)

2 medium carrots, peeled and cut in half

Preheat your oven to 400°F.

Place your beets in the middle of a sheet of foil and then fold the foil

over the top, folding and folding until it is secured down.

Fold the ends up until they meet the middle as well.

The goal here is to make sure it's airtight so the veggies steam in their packets.

Roast them for 45 minutes.

Allow your packets to cool a bit and open them carefully.

The carrots are ready to be mashed or pureed.

Now is the fun part with the beets:

Cover your hand in a plastic sandwich bag, gloves or saran wrap (pictured)

and simply peel the skin right off those beets.

It will come right off!  Cool, huh?

Add them to the carrots and mash or puree, 

adding water (or apple juice) to get it to the desired consistency.

Enjoy!

*Variations

-Add a fruit like apple or pear

-I think this would be great with a little fennel

-Add a dollop of yogurt or cottage cheese

-Cut the pieces and eat it yourself, add a little salt and pepper 

and a bit of goat cheese and it's heaven.

*Storage

Refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months

*Benefits

Beets are a great source of iron, folate, potassium, magnesium, calcium and a bit of vitamin C.

The leaves are packed with all the above and even more calcium and vitamins A & C.

Carrots have lots of carotenoids that work as antioxidants, convert to vitamin A, boost the immune system and protect and enhance your eyes and sight.

Are you a fan of beets?