If beets aren't your thing to begin with, this recipe won't convince you otherwise. It's a butter-fried pancake made of nothing but shredded beets, flour, a bit of chopped rosemary, and good old salt and pepper. The flavor is earthy, rich, and sweet, but unmistakeably beet-y. The beets are treated like potatoes to make a Swiss rösti, with a little flour added to amp up the starch and hold the patty together. It can be served as a nice dinner along with a simple salad, or as an accompaniment to a main.
I found this recipe for beet rösti on Mark Bittman's New York Times blog Bitten and was attracted to its simplicity. The result is surprisingly hearty and filling as the butter it's fried in caramelizes the sugars and crisps the edges. The key is to use only enough flour to hold the beets together to prevent it from getting leaden.
About the author: Blake Royer lives in Brooklyn and spends most of his free time cooking and writing about it here at Serious Eats and on The Paupered Chef. From 9 to 5 weekdays, he works as an assistant book editor in Manhattan.
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