Beets Are Beautiful

Some of you have already heard this story but I would like to share again for those possible beet haters.
First some beet photos to warm you up to them-

Lovely-

Beets modeling in a row-

How about if I add a little girl-

Does a pouty face help?

How about with a cat?

Yeah, the last one isn't so appealing.

Back to my story-
Beets used to taste like dirt to me.... literally.... they tasted exactly.like.dirt.  I had only tried home canned pickled beets and boiled/steamed beets.  Some people love these and that is great.  I did not.
That is until my husband, who was a beet lover before we met, insisted that we grow them and eat them regularly.  He liked them steamed and I just could not eat them (and I am NOT a picky eater, I will eat most anything).  So to save our marriage (*exaggeration) I tried roasting them instead since I knew roasting usually makes all vegetables sweeter.  It worked!  And our marriage was saved.... then this happened:

Yes, we became known as a beet loving family (notice the shirt, what did you think I meant?).

I was willing to continue to give beets a try because of their nutritional value.  More on that here.  Also, since it is a cool weather vegetable, you can plants them early in the spring for an early summer harvest.  Then plant something new in their place for the summer.  We also plant some beets late summer for a fall harvest.

So what do we do with the beets.  Like I said I roast them, like this-
Wash, crop tops to steam the greens (don't peel):

Drizzle them with some oil, seal them in a pouch and roast for around an hour at 375F (depends on size and amount):

Pierce with fork to ensure soft, let cool to touch and skins should slip right off:

Our favorite way of eating them is quartered with roasted almonds and feta or goat cheese.  Really good.  The kids even love these.  They are sweeter than roasted carrots, almost as sweet as roasted sweet potatoes.  Jonathan LOVES the beet greens steamed (yes, I used to think this was weird too).

The excitement of eating beets might cause problems with eye hand coordination.

There we go.

I have also substituted beets for carrots in shepherds pie.  We will also roast them with carrots.  Roasted beets and carrots are a classic combination.
Recently, I skinned and grated raw beets to make a slaw with aioli dressing.  I would assume there are other dressings that will work.  It was very good, kids were not as fond of this one though.
(Used red and golden beets)

I am sure there are many things you can do with them, like beet chips, but as insinuated before I am new to this beet cooking.  If you have a beet favorites please share.