Beet rosti with rosemary

Ali and I are in the middle of a Dan Barber-stoked love affair with beets, and beet rosti is an extremely easy way to prepare them. They're essentially beet latkes, and if you make them with rosemary they come out tasting like the best kind of earth. Be liberal with the salt. Ali made the salad out of the beet greens attached to our six organic beets, and topped it with some chevre left over from our party. The recipe comes from the Union Square Cafe via Mark Bittman.



BEET ROSTI WITH ROSEMARY

Time: 30 minutes

2 pounds beets (3 very large or 4 to 6 medium)
2 teaspoons coarsely chopped fresh rosemary
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1/2 cup flour
2 tablespoons butter
Minced parsley or a few rosemary leaves for garnish.

1. Trim beets, and peel them as you would potatoes; grate them in food processor or by hand. Begin preheating 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat.
2. Toss grated beets in bowl with rosemary, salt and pepper. Add about half the flour; toss well, add rest of flour, and toss again.
3. Put butter in skillet; heat until it begins to turn nut-brown. Scrape beet mixture into skillet, and press with spatula to form a round. With medium to medium-high heat -- the pancake should gently sizzle -- cook, shaking pan occasionally, until bottom of cake is nicely crisp, 8 to 10 minutes. Slide cake onto a plate, top with another plate, invert the two plates, and return cake to pan. Keep cooking, adjusting heat if necessary, until other side is browned, another 10 minutes or so. Garnish, cut into wedges, and serve hot or at room temperature.

Yield: 4 servings.

This post is part of Vegetables, Beautiful Vegetables.