Tag Archives: Beetroot

Beetroot, Carrot, Apple, & Ginger Smoothie

Posted in Recipes, Vegan / Veggie Friendly by

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Happy new Year everyone! Sorry this is a bit of a late post but jet-lag, work, and an unrelenting toothache have really taken it out of me, and I lost all resolve to blog despite my long absence. So I do apologise if you have been having  been suffering Fatgirl withdrawals, although I have been updating my Facebook page to keep you going.

So on to the first post of 2014. It being January and all I thought I would kick you off with a healthy one. Now before you go running and screaming away from the word healthy, it is no less delicious. So I present to you the beetroot, carrot, ginger, and apple smoothie. This is how I always start my day. I either have this one or a green smoothie, which I shall bring to you later in the week. Now I know you all like to think that I begin my day with half a dozen burgers or a few slices of cake but I don’t (except on Sundays!). For many years I have always believed it important to start my days with a healthy and nutritious breakfast, as it generally only goes downhill from there if I don’t. On weekdays I actually follow raw till 4, where I have either fruit or a salad for my lunch (usually with a bit of plain chicken in it) and snack on more fruit, veg or nuts until I get home from work. Then when I cook up dinner that’s when all the fun begins. I like junk food, in fact I love junk food, but I also enjoy lots of fresh and natural delights too. I just rarely share them, as most of you already know how to make a salad.

I’ve put on 9lbs over the 2 weeks I was visiting home and I’ve enjoyed every single one of them. I ate until my heart was content, because you have to enjoy it while you can. No roast potato, wrap, chip, chicken ball, or pastry delight was left uneaten. But now it’s time to pay the price and get back to it, or I shall never fit into all those lovely new clothes I bought myself.

So here’s my breakfast smoothie. I used to drink this as a juice, years ago when I lived in Australia, but here in Korea I don’t have a juicer. I actually think it’s better to have it as a smoothie though, all that fiber and roughage is important. My blender is nothing special and manages to make this smoothie 80% of the time. Sometimes it gives up half way through and I finish it off with the hand blender. The better your blender, the less chopping work you need to do. If the smoothie does come out a bit thick, you can always add a bit of extra ice or water. This recipe makes about 2 ½ smoothies. The fat boyfriend and I each have one for breakfast then I usually finish the leftovers when I get home. If you get up super early, you can always make it the night before and give it a stir before you drink it.

Ingredients

1 apple

½ a beetroot

⅓ of a carrot

2-3 baby oranges

2 inches of ginger (use as much as you like)

1 tablespoon of chia seeds (get them on i-Herb)

200ml of orange juice

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Directions

Start by putting the softest ingredients in first, so for me its the oranges, apple, beetroot, ginger then finally the carrot. How finely you chop depends on your blender. If you have a vitamix, you probably don’t need to chop at all. 1-2cm pieces work for me, but if your blender is especially crappy you can always grate the beetroot carrot and apple. Then add the chia seeds. If you are unfamiliar with chia seeds, I urge you to get on i-Herb and give them a try. They don’t taste of anything and they are great for cleaning the toxins out of your liver. Once it’s all in add the orange juice and blend. If it’s a bit thick, a handful of ice cubes usually gets things going again. Serve in a recycled coffee cup and head to work feeling smug about how healthy you are. Happy 2014 everyone!

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Roast Beetroot Dip & Homemade Pita Bread

Posted in Recipes, Vegan / Veggie Friendly by

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Another day, another dip. I am very into bread and dips at the moment. I have been going through them by the bucket-load. It’s so hot, that I am trying to limit my cooking to every other day. Some bread and dip is all I need to satisfy me on a hot summers eve. Once again I picked up some beetroot cheap and was looking for another interesting way to use them. This dip is easy and tasty and it’s bright pink!!! What more could you ask for? Feta was the ideal thing to pair it with but you could easily use Greek yoghurt or sour cream instead. I found a jar of feta cubes in my local store which I used but I believe they have real feta at Homeplus and the foreign food mart in Itaewon. If you are vegan then just skip the dairy completely, the roasted beet tastes great on it’s own.

I also decided it was about time I learned to make real pita bread. My flat bread recipe is awesome, but I wanted to take it to the next level. I scoured pinterest and found this recipe. It is by far and away the best recipe I have ever come across for pita bread and my most successful to date. They puffed up beautifully when rising. Sadly they did not get as big as the ones on the site, but  I have since discovered that is because the top heating element on my oven has broken, so they are rather on the pale side and not as golden brown as they could be. But they still tasted wonderful. I will definitely be making more the second my new oven arrives.

Ingredients

Beetroot dip

2 beetroots

2 – 3 cloves of garlic

50g of feta (I used about 10 small cubes)

A squeeze of lemon juice

Salt and pepper

Pita Bread

1 tablespoon yeast (I used instant)

1 1/4 cups of warm water

1 teaspoon of salt

31/2 cups of flour (450g)
Directions

To make the pita bread dissolve yeast in water for about 5 minutes in the bowl of an electric mixer. Add salt and 1 ½ cups flour and with the dough hook or with a whisk, beat to make a batter. Add additional flour until a rough, shaggy mass is formed. Knead  with your hands for 8 minutes until dough is smooth and elastic. Add more flour if it is too sticky.

Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and divide into six pieces for large pitas or ten for smaller. I make all sorts of sizes to suit different snacks and meals. Form dough into balls, then flatten with a rolling pin into ¼ inch thick discs. Try and keep an even thickness as this is what helps them ‘puff’.

Let rest on the floured surface 30-40 minutes until slightly puffed.

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Preheat oven to 425F.
With a large spatula, flip the rounds of dough upside down on to a baking sheet. Bake 10-15 minutes until light golden. Stick around for the first five minutes of baking when the pitas perform their magic and puff up from flat pancakes to proud, four inch high pitas.

These store for up to two days well wrapped or frozen for three weeks.

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To make the dip, you need to roast the beetroots for about an hour at 185 degrees Celsius until they are soft in the middle. If they are small to medium you can keep them whole, if they are large cut them in half. If you like you can drizzle a little olive oil on the beetroot first to stop it drying out, but its not 100 % necessary if you are looking to keep the calorie count down. When the beetroots have roasted they should be easy enough to peel, be mindful of pink hands though! Chop the beetroot into pieces and put it in the blender and blend with the garlic. You can roast the garlic first to take the edge off of it or keep it raw, it’s up to you. When you have a beautiful beetroot paste crumble in the feta and blend again. Add salt, pepper, and lemon juice to taste and maybe a little more feta. Voilà roast beetroot and feta dip with home-made pita bread.

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Roasted Vegetable Quinoa

Posted in Recipes, Vegan / Veggie Friendly by

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Last week I picked up some insanely cheap fresh beetroot at my local market, (2 for 1,000). It’s insatiably good for your liver and my liver needs all the help it can get. Roasted beetroot is amazingly good just by itself, but I had some veg in the fridge that needed using so I decided to whip up this quinoa for my week day lunches. Tasty and healthy is always a winner for me. Switch up the veg depending on what you’ve got but be sure to keep in that beetroot.

Ingredients

1 cup quinoa (iHerb)

2 cups of water

2 beetroots

1 aubergine

8 mushrooms

15 cherry tomatoes

1 tablespoon of mixed herbs

2 tablespoons of freshly chopped herbs (I used cilantro)

A glug or two of olive oil

Directions

Rinse the quinoa in water then put in your saucepan with 2 cups of hot water and bring to the boil. Turn the heat down once it is boiling and cook until all the water has evaporated and the quinoa is clear. Turn off the heat and leave to cool.

Chop and peel the beetroot and cut into chunks, top with salt and pepper, drizzle with olive oil, and bake at 200 degrees for about 10 minutes. Meanwhile chop the cherry tomatoes in half, and the aubergine and mushrooms into bite sized pieces. After the beetroot had had 10 minutes alone, add the other vegetables to the pan along with the mixed herbs and a little extra olive oil, and cook for another 10 minutes. When the  veg is nicely roasted stir into the quinoa, make sure to include all of those lovely juices. Chop the fresh herbs and sprinkle on top along with a squeeze of lemon. Voilà a lovely beetroot and quinoa salad. Serve hot or cold.

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Beetroot Risotto

Posted in Recipes by

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The beautiful vibrant pink of this gorgeous risotto just makes my heart want to sing. It’s the perfect way to make an ordinary dish a little different and have a totally different taste. Years ago I worked as a humble waitress at a rather fancy restaurant back home and this dish was always featured on their summer menu. After I discovered some beetroot in my local supermarket I thought it was about time I recreated that lovely dish. The beetroot gives it such a deep robust flavour without taking away from its overall riosottoiness. You may also be unaware that Korean rice is very suitable for using in a risotto as it’s a short grain. I actually discovered this way back in my first year when I looked at it and said that it looked exactly the same as the Italian Arborio rice. A little research indicated that they were both short grain rices and I decided to give it a whirl. It works perfectly so no need to scour the foreign food mart looking for risotto rice the next time you are in the mood for one.

Ingredients

200g of Korean Rice

1-2 liters of stock (chicken or vegetable)

2 beetroot

1 onion

4 cloves of garlic

25g of butter

100g of Freshly shaved parmesan

1 glass of white wine

1 tablespoon  of sour cream (optional)

A small handful of baby spinach (optional)

3-4 walnuts (optional)

Directions

Boil the beetroot in water for about 10 minutes to soften them. Then remove the skins, roughly chop and place in the blender. Heat the stock in a pan so that its gently simmering. Add about a cup to the beetroot and blend until they make a beautiful puree, then set aside. Finely chop the onions and garlic then fry for a few minutes in a little olive oil and butter until softened. Then add the rice and cook for a further few minutes until the rice is translucent. Add the glass of wine and stir occasionally until the liquid has evaporated. Then add 1 ladle-full of stock. When the stock has been absorbed add another ladle-full. You will need to do this for about 15-20 minutes adding one ladle-full at a time and letting it absorb before adding the next. Don’t rush it by adding too much stock. When the rice had become soft or aldente you are almost there. Stir in the beetroot puree then add the butter and half the parmesan and stir. Serve in a bowl and top with the baby spinach, sour cream, walnuts (if using), and top with more Parmesan. Voilà the perfect summertime risotto.

Beetroot & Carrot Salad

Posted in Recipes, Vegan / Veggie Friendly by

On Sunday I went to the Seoul Vegan Potluck dinner (click here for more details) with my dear friend Mat. It was Thanksgiving themed so I took stuffing, cranberry sauce and roast potatoes. Mat made a beetroot and apple crumble. The pot luck was lots of fun and there were loads of new dishes to try. The turn out was far bigger than I had ever imagined. There is clearly quite the vegan scene over here in Korea. Matt made the crumble at my house and I was left with half a large beetroot sitting in my fridge. I decided to whip up this salad to use it up. Perhaps I will even take this along to the next potluck.

Ingredients 

1/2 a beetroot

1 carrot

4 tablespoons of orange juice

2 tablespoons of sesame seed oil

2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon of soy sauce

3 tablespoons of sesame seeds.

Directions

Grate or shred the carrot and beetroot into a bowl. Add the orange juice, sesame seed oil, balsamic vinegar and soy sauce and stir. Top with the sesame seeds and enjoy. It’s a great hearty salad or side dish for the autumn months.