Color me purple: Get your antioxidant fix with this beet and lavender dish
12/17/2020 / By Leslie Locklear / Comments
Color me purple: Get your antioxidant fix with this beet and lavender dish

Purple has always been the color of royalty. And as it turns out, it’s also quite possibly the color of peak nutrition.

Take beets, for instance.

One of the most beloved of vegetables, beets are incredibly delicious and have even been recently identified as having amazing medicinal properties.

These medicinal and health-supporting properties, food experts said, is largely due to beets’ nature as an incredibly nutrient-dense vegetable.

In fact, beets are so nutrient-packed that a 3.5-ounce or 100-gram serving of cooked beets already provides the following:

  • 2 grams of Dietary Fiber
  • 6 percent of the RDI for Vitamin C
  • 20 percent of the RDI for Folate
  • 3 percent of the RDI for Vitamin B6
  • 6 percent of the RDI for Magnesium
  • 9 percent of the RDI for Potassium
  • 4 percent of the RDI for Phosphorus
  • 16 percent of the RDI for Manganese
  • 4 percent of the RDI for Iron

Not only that, but according to nutritionists, beets are also filled to overflowing with potent, health-supporting plant compounds known as betalains, which give this sweet, fresh-tasting root veg its distinct coloration.

These compounds, aside from providing vivid colors to beetroot, are also key to its health-supporting properties, as they are known to be potent anti-inflammatory agents, as well as antioxidants.

Lavender, on the other hand, is best known for its calming and sweet fragrance.

However, did you know that lavender also possesses healing properties?

These properties, as noted by experts, are mainly due to natural compounds called terpenes in the plant’s blossoms and leaves. Terpenes, according to experts, have natural calming and soothing effects on the brain which makes them extremely valuable for aromatherapeutic purposes.

In fact, the terpenes in lavender are so potent, that they are known to help treat certain issues such as the following:

  • Fungal infections
  • Anxiety
  • Insomnia and restlessness
  • Nausea
  • Headaches
  • Toothaches
  • Upset stomachs and intestinal gas

With that said, here is a beautiful orzotto recipe that fuses the two together, as adapted from an original creation by chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.

Roasted organic beetroot orzotto with lavender

Ingredients:

  • 1 pound small or medium-sized organic beets, scrubbed
  • 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for finishing
  • Sea salt and freshly ground organic black pepper
  • 4 cups organic chicken or vegetable stock
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted, grass-fed butter
  • 1 organic onion, finely chopped
  • 2 organic garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 3 strips organic lemon zest
  • 1 ½ cups pearled barley, rinsed and drained
  • ? cup dry white wine
  • 1 teaspoon finely chopped organic lavender
  • 7 ounces soft goat cheese, crumbled

Preparation

  1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit or 190 degrees celsius.
  2. While the oven is preheating, place beets in a small roasting pan and drizzle with 1 tablespoon oil and a pinch each of salt and pepper.
  3. When the oven has come to temperature, cover the pan with foil and roast the beets until tender. This will take about 1-1½ hours.
  4. Once the beets are cooked, remove them from the oven and set them aside to cool.
  5. Rub the skin from beets once they become cool to touch. Cut the flesh into small cubes.
  6. Heat stock in a lidded medium saucepan over medium heat until nearly simmering.
  7. While waiting for the stock to come to a simmer, heat the remaining oil and half of the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onions, garlic and lemon zest to the pan. Sauté, stirring gently, until onions are soft but not browned for about 10 minutes. Add beets and stir well.
  8. Once the vegetables and aromatics are done sauteing, add barley and let it toast, stirring occasionally for about two minutes.
  9. Add wine and let the liquid reduce until the pan is almost dry. This will take about 2-3 minutes.
  10. Once the pan is almost out of the liquid, add the hot stock, a couple of ladlefuls at a time, to the pan. Keep stirring the barley until all of the stock in the pan is absorbed. Repeat this step until you’ve used all the stock and the barley is tender. This will take about 40 minutes.
  11. Once all the liquid has been absorbed, take the pan off the heat, then sprinkle lavender and half of the goat cheese on top of the barley. Dot the orzotto with the remaining butter. Cover and let stand 2 minutes, then stir. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
  12. To serve, divide the finished orzotto among bowls, then top with some of the remaining goat cheese and a trickle of olive oil.

While it must be said that changing up one’s diet is already a healthy practice, organic vegetables and herbs such as beets and lavender — no matter how potent they are — are not magical food items that can immediately solve one’s health issues upon getting eaten. Adding more fruits, vegetables and herbs to one’s diet will only work if they are actually combined with an active lifestyle.

Sources:

Healthline.com

NutritionData.Self.com

PubMed.NCBI.NLM.NIH.gov

edicalNewsToday.com

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