Sacramento Digs Gardening: Beets brighten early spring meals

Cara Cara oranges and roasted beets combine in a colorful, healthy spring salad. (Photos: Debbie Arrington)

Beets are good for what ails you.

I got that advice often from my grandmother, who swore by beets as a universal tonic. (Borscht, anyone?)

Beets are packed with vitamins and antioxidants, making them a healthy comfort food. This early spring salad makes the most of their naturally sweet flavor, brought out by roasting.

Wedges of roasted beet are lightly tossed with citrus supremes (sections trimmed of any membrane) and a citrus vinaigrette. For this version, I used Cara Cara oranges, which have a pink hue to their sweet flesh. Red grapefruit or navel oranges work well, too.

The beets and citrus top a bed of baby spinach; baby arugula, lettuce or other greens may be substituted, also.

A word of warning: Beets turn everything pink. That includes your hands, clothes and cutting surfaces. Wear gloves and an apron while handling these vegetables.

After roasting, the beets should be cooled and peeled.

Easy roasted beets: Wash beets well, scrubbing off any dirt. Trim off tops, leaving about a half inch attached to the beet. (Save the greens; they’re great slow-cooked.) Trim off tap root.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Wrap beets in foil individually or, if small, in pairs. Place wrapped beets on a rimmed cookie sheet and put in oven. Roast for 45 to 60 minutes, or until beets are easily pierced with a skewer or thin blade.

Remove from oven and let cool slightly. Peel beets; the skins will slip right off.

Another tip: To avoid getting pink beet stains everywhere, hold the beet with a paper towel and rub the skin off with a corner of the paper towel.

Beets are two vegetables in one: Save the

tops for another recipe.

Roasted beets and citrus salad
Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

1 pound beets (about 4)
2 Cara Cara oranges or 1 red grapefruit, cut into sections or supremes
4 cups baby spinach or salad greens

Vinaigrette:
¼ cup orange or grapefruit juice
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon sugar
1 dash Tabasco
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

Roast beets, as directed above. (This can be done the night before.) After beets are peeled, chill until ready to assemble salad.

Cut beets into wedges. Place beets in bowl with citrus sections or supremes.

Make vinaigrette. In a jar, put all ingredients. Cover jar and shake until blended.

Add vinaigrette to beets and citrus; lightly toss.

Put spinach or greens on salad plates. Top with beet-citrus mixture.

Serve immediately.

RECIPE

A recipe for preparing delicious meals from the bounty of the garden.

Keywords:

recipes spring vegetables citrus gardening Sacramento farmers markets greens backyard produce produce management beets salad

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Garden checklist for week of April 19

After this midweek storm, start getting serious about spring gardening. Flowers are blooming about three weeks ahead of schedule. That includes weeds!

* Get ready to swing into action in the vegetable garden – if you haven’t already. As nights warm up over 50 degrees, set out tomato, pepper and eggplant transplants.

* From seed, plant beans, beets, cantaloupes, carrots, corn, cucumbers, melons, radishes and squash; wait on pumpkins until May. Plant onion sets.

* In the flower garden, plant seeds for asters, cosmos, celosia, marigolds, salvia, sunflowers and zinnias. Transplant petunias, zinnias, geraniums and other summer bloomers.

* Plant perennials and dahlia tubers for summer bloom. Late April is about the last chance to plant summer bulbs, such as gladiolus and tuberous begonias.

* Transplant lettuce and cabbage seedlings.

* April is the last chance to plant citrus trees such as dwarf orange, lemon and kumquat. These trees also look good in landscaping and provide fresh fruit in winter.

* Smell orange blossoms? Give citrus trees a low dose of balanced fertilizer (such as 10-10-10) during bloom to help set fruit. Keep an eye out for ants. If leaves look yellow, your tree may need an iron boost -- apply some chelated iron fertilizer.

* Apply slow-release fertilizer to the lawn.

* Thoroughly clean debris from the bottom of outdoor ponds or fountains.

* Spring brings a flush of rapid growth, and that means your garden needs nutrition. Give shrubs and trees a slow-release fertilizer. Mulch with a 1-inch layer of compost, which helps the soil, but keep it a few inches away from trunks and stems.

* Azaleas and camellias looking a little yellow? If leaves are turning yellow between the veins, give them a boost with chelated iron.

* Trim dead flowers but not leaves from spring-flowering bulbs such as daffodils and tulips. Those leaves gather energy to create next year's flowers. Also, give the bulbs a fertilizer boost after bloom.

* Pinch chrysanthemums back to 12 inches for fall flowers. Cut old stems to the ground.

* Mulch around plants to conserve moisture and control weeds.

Send us a gardening question, a post suggestion or information about an upcoming event. sacdigsgardening@gmail.com

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