Was anyone else totally smitten when they opened up their CSA box this week? Those COLOURS! We have a whole rainbow of vegetables this week, and below you’ll find some colourful recipes that bring a whole rainbow of flavours, too.
I’ve never made a beet dip before, but I can assure you I will be making one again. It’s such a wonderful way of showcasing the beet’s colour, and allows for beets to show up in two-three meals instead of just one. This dip has a nice balance of salt, acid, sweetness, and spice. It can be made with roasted beets (which I think would make it even more flavourful), but because it’s so darn hot I decided to steam mine instead. This worked out perfectly, and allowed me to keep my oven off.
The zucchini ribbon salad was a bit of an experiment for me – I’m already anticipating an abundance of zucchini, and I want to stockpile easy recipes. I was quite satisfied with the result – it’s very simple in prep and flavour profile, and is a fun way to eat zukes (kind of like pasta). It can be eaten raw (though marinated, so nicely softened), or quickly cooked (which makes it feel a bit more like pasta). We cooked ours, but I think next time I leave it marinating for a little while longer and eat it raw. I love my pasta al dente, and I think I like my zuke like that too!
To add even more colour to the meal, I whipped together a quick tomato salad – I didn’t include the recipe below, but I know you all have your favourites! Mine was a simple tomato, basil, olive oil, balsamic, salt, pepper salad, which is just one of the ways I like to eat a bounty of tomatoes!
More Magnificent Meal Musings:
- Lettuce Wraps with Beet Spread, Cuke, Green Onion, and Tomato
- Cucumber Raita with Pita and Carrot
- Carrot Cake Pancakes
- Fritters with Zuke, Carrot & Green Onion
- Pickled Beets
- Pickled Yellow Beans
- Multi-Bean Salad with Green/Yellow Beans, Basil, and Feta
- Carrot-Lime Slaw
Za’atar Spiced Beet Dip
Brilliant beets make for a colourful dip, with a satisfying complexity of flavours from the za'atar, yogurt, chilis, and lemon. Topped with goat cheese, hazelnuts, and green onions, and for sure I'm convinced I'll be making this again! We ate it as a dip, but it would also be great as a spread in a sandwich or wrap to add a pop of colour and flavour. This recipe is adapted from Yottam Ottolenghi via Food and Wine.
Ingredients
- 3-4 medium/large beets
- 1/2 cup greek yogurt
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 1/2 Tbsp za'atar you can find this at Tara's
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp tahini
- pinch chilli flakes
- salt to tast
Garnish
- 2 Tbsp roasted hazelnuts, roughly chopped
- 2 green onions, chopped on the the diagonal
- 3 Tbsp goat cheese, crumbled
Instructions
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Wash the beets without piercing the skin, and place them in the basket of a stovetop steamer. Set the heat to high, and steam, covered, for about 45-60 minutes, until tender. I would usually roast my beets in the oven (I love the flavour it produces), but it was just too hot!
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Once the beets are cooked, run under could water and peel off the skins. Cut into large wedges and add to the bowl of a food processor.
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Add remaining ingredients (other than garnish) in the food processor and pulse until smooth. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
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Place into a shallow serving bowl and scatter garnish overtop. Serve with pita, cucumber, beans, carrots, or whatever suits your fancy.
Zucchini Ribbon Salad
This is a simple recipe, and although we aren't yet in the thick of zucchini season, it's a wonderful recipe to have up your sleeve to enjoy an excess of zukes. Once marinated, the zucchini can be enjoyed as-is, or you can do a very quick sauté as we did to gently cook the zucchini. This makes enough for a side dish for 3-4 people, but can be doubled to make a more substantial main dish for 2-3 people.
Ingredients
- 2 medium zucchini
- 1 half lemon, juiced
- 1 tsp salt
- black pepper to taste
- 2 Tbsp olive oil, divided
- 3-4 Tbsp grated parmesan
- 4-5 basil leaves, torn
Instructions
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Using a vegetable peeler or mandolin, peel thin ribbons of zucchini into a large bowl. Add lemon juice and salt, and place covered in the fridge for 1-4 hours. This will soften the zucchini.
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Remove from fridge and drain excess liquid. At this point you can either place zucchini into a serving dish and add olive oil, basil, and parmesan, and black pepper and serve, or you can do a quick 2 minute sauté in a pan, and add the remaining ingredients once in the serving dish. Cooking the zucchini softens it further, and keeping it uncooked allows it to have a bit more substance and brightness.