Hooray for Beets!

I  love beets!!! I make them a lot at home, especially when I see them at my farmers market for cheap. Most people either love ‘em or hate ‘em. There’s usually no in between. But, we are here to tell you, after several attempts at making a delicious beet-inspired Simple Green Smoothie, we have finally found one good enough to call our own.

For those of you who are fans of beets, never had one or just maybe feel like adding a raw beet to your green smoothie sounds weird, this article is for you.

Beets are amazingly high in folate. So many mamas out there trying to get pregnant or already have a baby on the way – Yay! – get your beet on! A cup of beets contain nearly half of your folate needs which help protect baby against birth defects.

Want to keep things moving? Reach for  a beet! Beets are full of fiber which keep you full longer and also keep things moving on a regular basis.

Beets also contain high amounts of naturally occurring nitrates which might help increase exercise performance.

Waste not, want not! The entire beet plant is edible – leafy greens and all.

Loaded with antioxidants like Vitamin C, beets can help increase your immune system and lower your risk of cancer and other chronic illnesses.

Tips for enjoying a green smoothie with beets:

Roasting them before you add them to your blender. You can find out all about roasting different root vegetables here.

BAKED
Preheat oven to 400 degrees – Scrub each beet with a veggie brush, be sure to trim off the leafy greens and reserve for another time. Slice unpeeled beets into quarters, place on a baking sheet and roast for about 30 minutes or until cooked through. Once cooled, you can toss a few into your smoothies and enjoy all the sweet goodness beets have to offer.

STEAMED
In a steamer basket with a couple inches of water in pan, add scrubbed beet that has been cut in quarters (greens trimmed off) steam for about 15 minutes until just cooked through or a knife easily comes out. You now have amazing little beets with a super sweet taste that knocks an incredible punch to your green smoothies all week. The steaming brings down the “whoa” factor and mellows it to perfection. You can now add ½-1 cup of roasted beets to any of our favorite green smoothies.

And here’s a brand spankin’ new recipe created just for you…

OH SWEET BEET

• Prep Time: 5 minutes
• Total Time: 5 minutes
• Yield: 2
• Category: Breakfast, Drinks

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Ingredients

• 2 cups chard
• 2 cups almond milk
• 1/2 cup berries
• 1 ripe pear
• 1 banana
• 1/4 cup roasted beets
• 2 tbsp nut butter

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Instructions

1. Blend chard and almond milk
2. Add remaining ingredients and blend until smooth