Beat the blues with beetroot

The days are getting shorter (and wetter here in Amsterdam) and temperatures are dropping. Now that we miss the bright and sunny days our moods also tend to drop more easily, a whole year before it’s summer again! Of course every season has its charm and autumn offers us yummy and nutritious comfort food such as beetroot to help beat the autumn blues.

According to Traditional Chinese Medicine beetroot strengthens your heart and calms your spirit and your nerves.  But there are more great reasons to incorporate this root into your diet:

• Benefit healthy liver function 
• cleanse the blood 
• different scientific studies have shown it lowers high blood pressure
• Improves circulation
• they contain almost all the vitamins and minerals you need
• In combination with carrots they can support hormonal regulation during menopause

There are many ways to prepare this red wonder, you can juice them, cook them, roast them in the oven, turn them into a soup or use them in a risotto. To inspire you we are sharing a delicious recipe on our blog. Enjoy and feel how this comfort food can brighten up any dark and rainy day!

Beetroot Risotto

Here is a delicious and easy beetroot risotto recipe, you can keep it vegan or add some feta cheese if you like. The special touch in this risotto is the mint oil and the caramelised walnuts that together with the smooth taste of the beetroot risotto create a party in your mouth that will take away your autumn blues. 

Ingredients (serves 4)

• 1 big onion or 3 shallots, finely chopped 
• 500 gram of cooked beetroot, grated
• 1 liter of vegetable stock (hot)
• 300 gram of risotto rice
• 2 tbsp of coconut oil
• 2 tbsp of coconut blossom sugar or palm sugar
• 100 ml of virgin olive oil
• 6 branches of fresh mint leaves
• A big handful of walnuts
• Black pepper, freshly grounded
• 100 gram of feta cheese (optional)

Preparation (max. 60 minutes)

1. Start by taking off the mint leaves of their branches and crush them a little. Add to the olive oil and leave to stand for at least an hour or even better, the whole night. 
2. Melt 1 tbsp of coconut oil and add the sugar on medium heat until it starts to caramelize. Add the walnuts and stir through until all the walnuts are covered. Make sure they don’t burn and remove them timely from the pan onto a plate and leave to cool.
3. Use a big pot to prepare your risotto. Start by melting 1 tbsp of coconut oil and fry the shallots (or onion) on low heat, till they become transparent, not fried.  
4. Add the risotto rice and continue to stir for at least two minutes.
5. Now scoop a few big serving spoons of vegetable stock into your risotto pot and keep stirring until the stock has been mostly absorbed/evaporated. Add a bit more stock and continue in this way until the risotto rice is nearly cooked, or as the Italian call it ‘al dente’.
6. About half way through this cooking procedure add the grated beetroot to the rice.
7. When the risotto is done add black pepper to taste and allow it to stand for a few minutes before serving, this will enhance the flavours.
8. Serve your risotto with the caramelized walnuts, sprinkle a bit of mint oil on top and add some feta cheese if you like. Also tastes great with rocket salad.