Beet

A mandoline makes easy work of slicing beets paper thin; if you don’t have one, you can use a very sharp knife, but the slices will take longer to dry out in the oven and won’t be as crisp once cooled. You’ll need four rimmed baking sheets to make the chips, or you can bake them in batches.

I don’t like many beet preparations because they tend to be too sweet for me, but the horseradish that these are tossed with fixes that. In the Pizzeria, we present these beets as an antipasto, which is how we give them to you here. In the Osteria, we serve the same beets as part of a composed plate, spooned over burrata, topped with toasted walnuts that have been tossed in walnut oil, fried paper-thin sliced beets, and mâche. We used to dress the beets with freshly grated horseradish, but I found the spiciness to be really inconsistent. Then I was introduced to a jarred, prepared horseradish, Atomic—it really has that horseradish burn. I love it. It’s one of the rare instances where fresh isn’t best.

Serve these beets as part of a picnic platter or relish tray, or use them in sandwiches or salads. Golden beets work as nicely as red ones. Leaving beet tails and an inch or so of the stems intact helps minimize the loss of color (as well as flavor and nutrients) during cooking. Trim and peel the beets after they’ve been boiled; the skins will come off easily.

If you use beets of different sizes, keep in mind that their cooking times may vary. Take each out of the oven as it’s ready (knife-tender).

If baby beets are not available, use large beets cut into 1-inch chunks.

To make this recipe in advance, dice the beet and prepare as directed in step 1, and refrigerate it in the liquid, covered, up to 1 day.

To prevent the lentils from becoming too soft as they cool, spread them on a baking sheet.

We used several varieties of beets, including Golden Globe and Chioggia, for a colorful salad, but you may use any variety you like.

Chioggia beets are pink on the outside and striped on the inside. Because they are not cooked in this recipe, choose tender baby beets. You can use red or golden beets if Chioggia beets are unavailable. After your grill becomes hot, grill the lemon halves, cut side down, until lightly charred. Remove, let cool slightly, and squeeze their warm juice over the vegetables.

Buying beets with the greens attached—as required for this recipe—is a sure way to know they’re fresh. Beets are often cooked before they’re peeled or cut to keep nutrients intact. Here, the prep work is done first without sacrifice: The juices that result make up the nutritious broth and give the soup its deep flavor and color.

Garnet-colored beets topped with a reduction of balsamic vinegar and brown sugar, then sprinkled with cinnamon-sugar walnuts, are a great complement to dishes such as Tarragon Turkey Medallions (page 161) or a simple roasted pork tenderloin.

This is not your basic antipasti. Serving a beautiful platter of wood-roasted seasonal vegetables, cured meats, hand-crafted cheeses, home-cured olives, and smoke-kissed crusty bread to family and friends as a prelude to dinner is an artful way to honor guests. This is just what chef Chris Bianco does at his restaurant, Pizzeria Bianco, in Phoenix, Arizona. Chris’s wood-fired pizzas are now legendary, but his wood-roasted antipasti platter sings. I hope you will enjoy my version, and create many versions of your own.

R. B.’s childhood campout hobo packet memories have inspired many of our favorite side dishes. He’s put just about every vegetable combo imaginable in a foil packet on the grill. Without added water, vegetables steam in their own juices and roast beautifully over the direct high heat of the grill. Even better and easier than the grill is the even heat of a hot oven. If there were a hobo packet merit badge, R. B. would have definitely earned it.

Earthy, sweet beets and tangy, juicy tangerines were meant for each other. I’m just the hungry matchmaker. I set them up on an exotic date with a splash of fragrant orange-flower water and ribbons of mint. Not only do they taste delicious together, they also make quite a stunning couple.

I was raised by a beet-hating mother, so we never ate them when I was growing up. But when I left the nest and actually tasted a “forbidden” fresh beet, I was smitten with its sweet earthiness and beautiful color. For years, my mother and I battled back and forth: I relentlessly tried to convince her of beets’ many virtues, and she adamantly hung on to her contempt for them. One Sunday, she called Lucques to ask me what we were serving for supper that night. And then I did it—I lied to my mother. I couldn’t help myself, and made up the name of a beetless dish that I knew would tempt her. I told myself it was all for a good cause. When Mom came in that night and tasted roasted beets, bathed in toasty cumin vinaigrette and arranged on the plate with so many delicious treats, like Nyons olives, fried chickpeas, and slivers of dried ricotta, I knew I had cured her of her beet-hating ways.