Beets aren’t just for salads anymore. These highly nutritious root vegetables can be found on dessert menus everywhere and are popping up in many recipes both sweet and savory. I always think of beets as a love-them-or-hate-them food. You’re either all in or all out!
Beets have been used in baked goods since the late 19th century, and especially during World War II when food was rationed. Think about some of the classics: carrot cake, pumpkin pie, banana bread, and zucchini loaf. Beets add moisture to baked goods along with a natural sweetness.
In yeast breads, roasted beet puree makes for an incredibly tender crumb and moist interior thanks to the added hydration of the purée (similar to potato bread!) and a delicate crust, since the natural sugar in the beets creates more caramelization. Ultimately, the beets add a pleasantly earthy, subtly sweet flavor that enhances the rolls without overpowering them.
The idea of using beets to bulk up bread dough is said to have originated in Paris or Vienna or Germany.
Today the nutrition-packed beet is considered a ‘super food’, credited with everything from lowering blood pressure and increasing energy to fighting inflammation and detoxifying the body.
With that in mind, it seems like a good reason to make some roasted beet biscuits to serve with some grilled chicken and corn on the cob.
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- 2 cups flour
- 1 Tbsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, cold & cut into cubes
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 1/2 cup roasted beet puree
Ingredients
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- Preheat oven to 400 F.
- Put the flour, baking powder, salt & sugar in the bowl of a food processor and process briefly to combine.
- Pulse in the butter, about 10-15 pulses to break it up & evenly distribute it through the flour. The mix will be coarsely crumbly.
- Whisk together the buttermilk & beets, then add to the dry ingredients, while pulsing the machine. If necessary, add a little more buttermilk to insure that the dough comes together. DON'T OVER PROCESS.
- Turn the wet dough out onto a floured board & knead a couple of times to blend the beet color through the dough.
- Pat the dough into an thick 8 inch round & cut 6 biscuits. Reform the dough gently & cut 2 more.
- Place the biscuits on a parchment lined baking sheet. Put the whole pan in the freezer for about 20 minutes. If your pan can’t fit in the freezer, put it in the refrigerator.
- Bake the biscuits for about 15-18 minutes, until risen & baked inside.
- Cool on a rack, or eat hot. Nice to serve with grilled chicken & corn on the cob. On the other hand Brion & I enjoyed ours with a veggie omelet.
- The beets should be roasted until they are completely soft, and you need to puree them thoroughly, so they are as smooth and lump free as possible.
- You will want to knead the dough briefly to work the beet puree through the dough so that your biscuits have as uniform a color as possible. The trick to creating light and flaky biscuits is to only handle the dough as much as necessary, just enough to bring everything together. Overworked dough becomes dense and tough.