Beet butter

I'm a lifelong lover of beets.  Fresh beets are now in season at the farmer's market and I have a hard time resisting buying them.  Unfortunately, none of my family like beets, they refuse to eat them and unlike other vegetables like eggplant, I can't hide them in dishes I make because of their bright red color.  I do use the beet greens in sofrito, soups, pesto or added to other greens in a recipe I'm making for my family.  Usually, I roast beets and eat them on the side of whatever I'm making or on top of a salad.  I found a recipe for beet relish and have made that for several years, processing them in a water bath canner, but again I have to find people who like beets to share the many jars I make.  This year I found a recipe for beet butter, a sandwich spread or dip, and made it this week.  I had bought beets at the farmer's market for several weeks and had cut them up and put them in a container in the refrigerator and kept adding to the container until it was full, about 4 cups of chopped beets.  The beet butter is really yummy, and easy to make especially with a food processor to puree it all together.  The recipe called for

macadamia nuts but I had shelled sunflower seeds so used those instead.  Since the sunflower seeds are so salty, I did not add additional salt.  I put the finished beet butter in a container in the refrigerator for myself, shared some with a coworker that's also a beet lover and put the rest in the freezer in serving side bags. I also made a yummy wrap for dinner with beet butter, ham, cheese, lettuce and spouts. Here's the recipe:

BEET BUTTER RECIPE

4 c chopped beets
2 c sunflower seeds or macadamia nuts

4 T vegetable oil, or grapeseed, any natural tasting oil

4 T maple syrup

3 to 4 T honey
dash of pepper and parsley


In a medium pot, cook beets in lightly salted water until fork tender, 15 to 20 minutes.  Drain beets and set aside to cool for a few minutes.  In a food processor combine nuts/seeds, oil, syrup, honey, vanilla and seasonings. Process until smooth.  Add cooked beets and continue to process until beet butter is completely smooth, scraping down the sides of the food processor as needed. Taste and adjust seasonings and texture (adding more oil or syrup) as needed.  Allow the mixture to cool to room temperature before serving. Enjoy it with crackers, toast, as a sandwich spread, or as a dip for vegetables.  Can be stored in airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week.  Makes about 3 to 4 cups.  I froze the extra in 1 cup servings in freezer bags.


Enjoy,
Bamah