Let the Beet Rock
By Jessie Cadle
Photography by Michelle Kappeler

This voluptuous, heart-shaped rooted plant with lengthy, leafy sprouts is sweet and delectable from top to bottom, and boasts a color palette from the classic striking purple to sunset yellow. No other vegetable is so sweet with such a low calorie count (just 37 calories in one beet, plus tons of Vitamin A), and according to beet legend, if a couple eats from the same beetroot they will fall in love. We are head-over-purple heels for fresh beets, so we head to Shenot Farm Market first for their fresh beets, and chat with owner Ed Shenot about his wife’s pickled beet recipe. “They’re delicious, and so good for you,” he says, as we plan to eat the beets out of the brine just as his wife suggests. But we haven’t had our beet-y fill yet, so we meander over to Eleven for a simple golden beet salad (the leafy part of beets is a perfect spinach-like salad addition) with goat cheese and cherry vinegar, and Corporate Chef Bill Fuller gives us a few roasted baby beets to pop in our mouths: “They have such a natural sweetness,” he says. We take them to-go as we head off to The Supper Club in Greensburg, where we devour (delicately, of course) roasted beets with salmon, chicken, or beef and best of all, a dessert menu that features beets with chocolate cake (a combination that weakens our knees). “Beets are very versatile,” explains Chef Greg Andrews, adding “all people know of beets is canned beets, and if you give them a well-prepared, roasted beet, it opens their mind.” In a beet stupor, we head over to Right By Nature, which hosts beets of all shapes and sizes. General Manager Michael Johnson directs us to his favorite: the candy-striped beet. “Beets’ sweetness and unique flavor profile will win you over. The crispness of a well-cooked beet partners so well with many flavors, especially creamy and tangy cheeses,” he says. And following his sound advice, we grab some farm fresh cheese to try the combo ourselves. (Divine.) As we’re finally finishing our meal of pulpy, sweet delight, we realize we have, just as the legend predicts, fallen in love … with the beet itself.

Eleven, 1500 Smallman St., Strip District. 412.201.5656. bigburrito.com/ eleven. The Supper Club, 101 Ehalt St., Greensburg. 724.961.0536.  supperclubgreensburg.com. Right By Nature, 2305 Smallman St., Strip District. 412.454.6200. rightbynature.net. Shenot Farm Market, 3754 Wexford Run Road, Wexford. 724.935.2542. shenotfarm.com. Wisegeek.com, caloriecount.about.com, whfoods.com.