Late Summer Succotash

(What's that crab doing sitting among those vegetables? You'll see.)

            “Some days in late August at home are like this, the air thin and eager like this, with

                                 something in it sad and nostalgic, and familiar.”
                             - from The Sound and The Fury by William Faulkner

Summer is winding down. The light at dusk changes, more yellow reflecting on the leaves. Autumn arrives in a few weeks.

If you are a farmer’s market shopper like me, you will find all you need to make a succotash, whether it’s exactly like this one or not. It’s open to personal interpretation and preferences.

Succotash is the familiar vegetable dish that comes to us from the Native Americans. Variations of it appear across the country. I grew up with it made with lima beans. No thank you. 

The basics are corn and beans, but it becomes more interesting with the addition of other seasonal offerings, such as squash, bell pepper, or sweet cherry tomatoes. I found fresh cranberry beans but any bean will work, even green beans or wax beans. It’s the spirit of the dish that’s important.

I made this one night as a base for soft shell crabs (for me) and salmon for my red haired food co-pilot. It pairs with anything.

A fresh shell bean, such as a cranberry bean, needs time to cook, about 20 to 30 minutes depending on the size of the beans you find inside the pod. If you use a shelling bean, they can cook while you put the succotash together, then when the beans are ready, drain them and add stir them into the succotash. A fresh green bean or wax bean just needs to be sliced and cooked with the other vegetables until tender. Add the corn last since it requires the least amount of cooking time.

It’s easy.

Late Summer Succotash

for two servings

¼ pound cranberry beans (1/2 cup beans when shelled)

2 ears corn

½ cup diced onion

¼ cup diced red bell pepper

1 or 2 cloves garlic, minced

10 to 12 cherry tomatoes, halved

2 Tablespoons fresh basil, torn

salt and freshly ground black pepper

olive oil, for cooking

1 Tablespoon unsalted butter, optional

1. If you are using a fresh shelling bean, remove them from their pods and set aside.  Fill a medium-sized saucepan with about 2 cups of water, place it onto the stove, and bring it to a boil. When the water is boiling, add the beans and cook until tender, about 20 to 30 minutes.

2. Husk the corn. Cut the kernels from the cobs. The easiest way to do this is to stand the corn upright in a bowl  and slice down the length of the cob to cut the kernels from the cob. The falling corn will stay in the bowl. Set the corn aside.

3. Place a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, swirl in about 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add the onions and bell pepper to the pan and cook for about 2 minutes until the onions become translucent. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the cherry tomatoes and season lightly with salt and ground black pepper. Cook for about 4 minutes to soften the tomatoes. Add additional olive oil as needed if the pan appears dry. (If you are using a fresh green or wax bean, add them now along with ½ cup of water to help cook the beans). If you are using a shelling bean and they’re still cooking, remove the pan of vegetables from the heat and wait until the beans are tender. When the beans are tender, drain them and add them to the pan. Add the corn and torn basil to the pan with about ¼ to 1/3 cup water. Let the succotash simmer gently for about 2 to 3 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning, if necessary. Add the tablespoon of butter to the succotash, if using, and stir.

It’s ready.

                                             End of the Summer Soft shells over Succotash

Really Deep-Dish Peach Crumb Pie

                                       “Really love your peaches, want to shake your tree…”

It’s our prime peach season right now with the arrival of freestone peaches, which makes making anything with peaches all that much easier. So last week at our local farmer’s market I bought a case of peaches. I might plead insanity if there weren’t others doing the same thing. My plan was to take some to work for dessert specials, give visiting oldest daughter some to take home, and use the rest throughout the week.

This week’s pie night offering will be a deep-dish pie. Really deep, made in a spring form pan with the peaches piled high.

Making the pie in a spring form pan has a few challenges but they’re easy to overcome. The recipes for the crust and the crumb topping are included at the end of the main recipe so you won’t have to track them down elsewhere.

Really Deep-Dish Peach Crumb Pie

You will need a double crust recipe of pie crust dough. There will be extra dough but it’s easier than making too little and running short.

It will help to line the ring of your spring form pan with parchment paper (or aluminum foil). This will make it easier to remove the ring of the pan from the pie when you go to serve it. The crust won’t stick to the sides of the pan and all you will have to do is peel the paper off from around the pie. Parchment works best for this if you have it.

The crumb topping can be made in advance and stored in a food storage bag in the refrigerator or freezer.

This is a big pie. It will take about 1 hour and 20 minutes to bake.

8 cups sliced peaches (This was about 4 ¾ pounds of peaches)

½ cup plus 2 Tablespoon sugar

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon grated nutmeg

4 Tablespoons cornstarch

Pie Crust (recipe below)

Crumb Topping (recipe below)

1. Halve the peaches and remove the pits. Cut each peach half in half again then peel them. Cut the peaches into ½” pieces and place them into a bowl. Add the sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg and stir. Let stand for 20 to 30 minutes.

2. Prepare the spring form pan. The bottom of a spring form pan has a side that has a small lip at the edge. You do not want that side to be the bottom of your pan. Turn it so that the smooth, flat surface is facing up in the pan. Attach the ring to the pan. Cut strips of parchment paper about 2” wide. To stick the paper to the ring of the pan either spray the ring with food release or use butter. Press the paper in place. You do not need to line the bottom of the pan. Place the prepared pan into the freezer to chill.

3. Roll out your crust to 1/8” thickness, about 13-14” in size. There will be excess dough. Remove the spring form pan from the freezer and carefully fit the dough into the pan; the cold surface of the pan will help the dough stick to the sides as you fit it in place, which will make the job easier. Trim the edges of the dough so that you have about a 2” height all around the pan. Use a fork to lightly prick the bottom and sides of the crust. Return the pan to the freezer.

4. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Remove the spring form pan from the freezer. Place the pan onto a baking sheet. Line the inside of the pan with a sheet of aluminum foil. Fill the foil with pie weights or dried beans or rice, pushing the weights up the sides of the crust. Place the pan into the oven and bake for 15 minutes. Remove that pan after 15 minutes, carefully remove the piece of foil filled with the pie weights then return the empty shell to the oven to bake for an additional 5 minutes. After five minutes, remove the pan from the oven and set aside to cool.

5. Raise the oven temperature to 450 degrees. Mix the cornstarch into the peaches. Spoon the peaches into the pie shell. You will have to mound them slightly higher in the center. Pour most of the remaining juices in the bowl over the peaches. Spread the crumb mixture over the peaches. Place the tray with the pie into the oven and bake for 10 minutes; after 10 minutes, lower the temperature to 350 and continue baking for 1 hour and 15-20   minutes, when the filling is bubbling. Remove the pie from the oven and set aside to cool completely.

To serve, remove the ring from the pan and peel away the parchment paper.

This one’s a big one. Where’s the ice cream?

 Pie Crust Dough

This is a double recipe as needed above

 3 cups all purpose flour

¼ teaspoon salt

1 cup shortening  (or substitute with ½ cup shortening and ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter

¾ cup cold water

1. Place the flour and salt into a bowl. Using a fork or a pastry cutter, cut half of the shortening into the flour until it makes small crumbs; cut the remaining shortening into the flour, leaving it in larger sized pieces. Add the water a little at a time and mix until a ball of dough comes together. Remove the dough from the bowl. Pat it flat, wrap it in plastic and refrigerate for at least an hour. This can also be made a day in advance.

Crumb Topping

1 ½ cup all purpose flour

¼ cup + 2 Tablespoons cup sugar

¼ cup + 2 Tablespoons brown sugar (either dark of light)

½ teaspoon salt

1 ½ sticks unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1. To make the crumb topping, place all of the dry ingredients into the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the paddle attachment, mix the ingredients together. Add the butter and mix until the mixture comes together and forms medium-sized crumbs. Set aside. (Alternately, this can be done by hand using a fork or a pastry blender).

There will be slightly more crumb topping than what you will need for this recipe.

Elote!

           

“You can do anything with local food.” –Corbin Evans

One of the better parts of working in restaurants is the people who cross your path. Very often they move on and you lose track of them but thanks to the Internet, you can find them again.

Corbin Evans is one of those people. Corbin and I worked together in a Philadelphia restaurant years ago. Corbin left to open his own place but closed it due to landlord problems. He moved on, down south, landing in New Orleans. A chef of great talent, his career has experienced highs (recognition from national press) and lows (Hurricane Katrina). After taking a soul -crushing job in institutional cooking to get back on his feet after the hurricane (“Use only these vendors. No local food”), he struck a deal with the owner of the Lyric Theatre in downtown Oxford, Mississippi. Carving out a tiny kitchen from an unused closet (literally) he opened Oxford Canteen, a place where he can cook as he pleases and follow his philosophy of sourcing food locally.

It has worked. Oxford Canteen celebrated its first birthday in March. Corbin is not a person of many words (his own admission) but you can get an idea of the man through his food. The Canteen may be miles away from where you are right now but  if you are ever planning to pass through Oxford, (Ole Miss) you should make it a stop. It’s tucked down an alley but I would imagine anyone you ask would know where it is. You can check out the website below.

Having built up Corbin and his food, this is not his recipe. Sorry. But I feel it’s in his spirit, that of taking good fresh, local ingredients, borrowing an idea from somewhere (in this case, elote, Mexican corn on the cob) and making it into something “new” and delicious.

Elote is Mexican street food: grilled corn on the cob slathered with mayo or crema, ancho chile powder, lime juice, and cotija cheese. For this recipe, the corn is first grilled then cut of the cob. The corn is mixed with greens and some seasonal vegetables then tossed in a dressing made up from flavors you would find in elote. A sprinkle of some cotija cheese finishes the salad. It’s open to possibilities of course. There is no correct way to make this salad. Just don’t skimp on the corn. Plan on one ear person, but why not grill extra corn and have it on hand for when you want to make the salad again later in the week.

If you don’t have a grill you can do what I do. Place the corn, one ear at a time, over a gas flame and rotate until the corn is charred. No grill or gas? I haven’t tried this method but I am certain you could roast the corn-on-the-cob in a 400 degree oven until nicely browned.

The dressing makes a small quantity that can be kept in a container in the refrigerator. It may “break” but a few quick shakes will pull it back together.

Elote Salad

For two servings

Plan one ear per person but while you’re at it, grill several and keep the extra on hand to use later

2 ears corn on the cob

3 Tablespoons lime juice

8 Tablespoons oil (I used3 T. canola oil and 5 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil)

salt and ground black pepper, to taste

1 teaspoon ancho chile powder (or other chile powder)

pinch of sugar

¼ cup mayonnaise, sour cream, or Mexican crema (or a combination)

2 or 3 Tablespoons crumbled cotija cheese (freshly grated Parmesan will work, too)

salad greens of your choice

cherry tomatoes

sliced radishes

(plus whatever else you’d like to add, such as sliced avocado, toasted pumpkin seeds/ pepitas, etc).

1. Husk the corn and remove the corn silk. Place the corn on a hot grill and cook until evenly charred. Remove the corn from the grill and let cool. To cut the corn off the cob, stand the corn in a medium-sized bowl and cut down the cob, slicing off the kernels. Discard the cobs. Transfer the corn to another bowl, cover, and refrigerate until needed.

To assemble the salad, place two handfuls of mixed greens into a bowl. Add the corn, radishes, and tomatoes (and other ingredients of your choosing) to the bowl. Mix the dressing together if it has separated. Spoon about 2 tablespoons (or so) of the dressing into the bowl and toss to evenly distribute. Add the cheese and mix the cheese into the salad. Divide the salad between two plates and serve.

As Corbin says, “Eat like you mean it.”

Oxford Canteen: http://oxfordcanteen.com/

Slow Cooked Zucchini

The other day I saw a recipe for slow cooked green beans and I thought that it could easily be applied  for zucchini. Because it’s that time of summer again--the attack of the killer zucchini. You know the type, the giant, overgrown monsters from your Great Aunt Tessie’s garden. They arrive on your front door steps in the dark of night like orphaned children, your well-meaning friends either overwhelmed by their abundance of summer squash or simply out of ideas of what to do.

But this technique isn’t for those monsters. They’ve grown too large, their seeds too big, the skins too tough. Those often end up stuffed and baked. Or made into zucchini bread. At our local farmer’s market they are everywhere, too, in all sizes spilling out of bushel baskets.  It’s been that kind of year.

I like to select smaller-sized ones, about 5 to 7 inches in length. I combine them with onion, garlic, tomatoes, basil and olive oil and let them cook low and slow. It’s that simple. After about twenty minutes, they yield easily to the point of a knife. A sprinkle of cheese is all you need to finish them. Serve them in a bowl with the cooking liquid along with your favorite protein and dinner is ready.

I have to go. More zucchini just walked in the front door.

Slow Cooked Summer Squash

While Mediterranean in inspiration, you could also season the squash with some chile powder, omit the basil and use chopped cilantro for a recipe that leans a little south-of-the-border.

For two servings

2 medium-sized zucchini or summer squash (about 5 to 7 inches each)

½ cup sliced onion

1 or 2 cloves garlic, sliced

1 medium tomato, chopped (1 cup) or 1 cup canned crushed tomatoes

6 to 8 fresh basil leaves

salt and ground black pepper

olive oil, for cooking

¼ cup water

few tablespoons cheese (I used queso fresco because I had some leftover in the 'fridge. Goat cheese or

             another crumbling cheese or even Parmesan or Romano would work)

1. Wash the zucchini. Cut off the top and bottom ends from the squash. Slice the squash in half, lengthwise, then in half again. Carefully run your knife the length of each piece to remove the softer, seed-bearing part. Set aside.

2. Place a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. When hot, swirl in 2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil. Add the onion and cook until the onion begins to soften, about 2 to 3 minutes; do not brown the onions. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the tomato; season with salt and ground black pepper and stir together. Let tomatoes cook for two to three minutes to soften and begin to give off juice. Lay the zucchini into the pan skin side down. Season the squash with a little salt and pepper. Tear and scatter the basil into the pan. Add the water. Cover the pan and lower the heat. Let the zucchini simmer gently until completely tender, about twenty minutes or so depending on the size of the squash. Before serving, taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary. Scatter the cheese over the squash. Carefully remove the zucchini from the pan and serve with the cooking liquid. 

Strawberry, Apricot & Bluebery Pie

Cook with what the farm is giving you.

And after a lazy, cool start in the spring followed by a quick warm up, the choices at our local farmer’s market are staggering. I cannot recall a season when, at one stand alone, you can find strawberries, blueberries, black raspberries, raspberries, apricots, cherries, peaches, and the first plums available at the same time. Which is how I arrived at the combination for this pie. I like the combination of strawberry and apricot (see archives: 6/3/12) and added blueberries.

No complicated thought process there.

For the beginning of pie night this year, I decided to use an all-butter pie crust. I’ve never been a fan. I’ll stick with vegetable shortening for the flakiness; lard is best but people run screaming from the room at the mention of that word. To be honest, when one of my nephews was little the mention of the word “lard” would reduce him to laughter. Some kids laugh at the word “underwear,” his was “lard.” And “blender.”

All-butter pie crusts usually include a little vinegar. You don’t taste the vinegar; it helps with the flaky quality of the finished crust.

None of this is complicated unless you have to work around a dog, a very big golden retriever who feels his presence will assure great results, even if it means he plants himself underfoot. Welcome to our life.

Strawberry, Apricot, and Blueberry Pie   

1 pint strawberries (2 cups)

1 pint apricots (2 cups)

1 pint blueberries (2 cups)

½ cup sugar

5 Tablespoons cornstarch

1 egg beaten with 1 teaspoon water

Pie Crust

For one 9” double crust pie

The crust can be mixed by hand, or using a pastry blender, in a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a food processor. If you use a food processor, take care not to over mix the dough.

If you want to skip the butter, use an equivalent amount of vegetable shortening and omit the vinegar. Or use half butter and half shortening. Whichever you prefer.

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into ½” pieces, chilled

1 teaspoon cider vinegar

1 cup cold water (you won’t need all of it)

1. Place the flour and the salt into a bowl and mix to combine. Add half of the cold butter and mix until the butter forms a sandy texture with the flour. Add the rest of the butter to the bowl and continue mixing, leaving bigger pieces of butter in the flour.

2. Pour the vinegar into a measuring cup. Add enough water to make ¾ cup liquid. Add the water to the dough in small amounts mixing until the dough comes together and forms a ball. If the dough appears too dry, add a little additional water. Remove the dough from the bowl and divide in half. Shape each piece of dough into a flat disk. Wrap and refrigerate the dough for at least 20 to 30 minutes or overnight.

3. Rinse the strawberries under cold water. Remove the stems and cut the berries in half lengthwise. If the berries are large, you might have to cut them into quarters. Place the strawberries into a bowl. Wash the apricots. Run a knife around the apricot, cutting down from the top. Separate the halves and remove the pits. Quarter the apricots and place them into the bowl. Rinse the blueberries under cold water. Pick out any stems, if necessary, then place them into the bowl with the other fruit. Add the sugar and mix together. Set aside for 20 minutes.

4. Roll out the bottom crust. Remove one dough disk from the refrigerator. Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and roll the dough out away from you in one direction. Give the dough quarter turns in a circle and continue rolling out the dough dusting with additional flour as needed until the dough is 1/8” thick. Lift and place the dough into a 9” pie plate. Trim the excess dough from the edge, leaving about a ½” overhang. Place into the refrigerator.

5. Heat oven to 450 degrees. After the fruit has given off some of its juices, mix in the cornstarch until evenly blended. Set aside.

6. Roll out the top crust. Cut a circle into the center of the dough. Remove the bottom crust from the refrigerator. Place the fruit into an even layer in the pie pan. Brush the edge of the bottom crust with some of the egg wash. Lay the top crust over the fruit, pressing the edges together. Trim away excess dough. Press the edges of the crust to thin them out and turn them under onto the rim of the pie plate. Crimp the edges together around the outside of the crust. Brush the top of the crust with some of the egg wash; sprinkle the top crust with some sugar if you wish.

7. Place the pie onto a baking tray and then into the oven. Bake at 450 degrees for 10 minutes; after ten minutes reduce the heat to 350 degrees and continue baking for an additional 40 to 45 minutes until the filling is bubbling. Remove from the oven. Resist all temptation to eat it until it cools completely. Serve alone, but c’mon, really? Break out the ice cream!

Shrimp with Tasso

Regionalism is shrinking. Once if you wanted a certain “regional” food, such as the many permutations of barbecue (Memphis. St. Louis, Texas, North Carolina, etc), or lobster rolls or even Buffalo wings, you had to travel to get it.

But now distances have been shortened.  Northerners now try their hand at being pit masters. Buffalo wings, or some sorry version, are everywhere. You can order Corky’s barbecue off of the TV.

There are advantages and disadvantages to this of course. But if it makes a great ingredient more easily obtainable, I’m there.

Tasso is spiced, smoked pork shoulder used in Southern Louisiana, Cajun/Creole in origin.

I have been lucky to find locally made tasso at our local farmer's market supplied by Freeland Market.

Freeland Market is a family-run business in Pottstown. They make a large variety of sausages and they also make a great version of  tasso. 

The uses of tasso are pretty limitless; think of where you might use bacon and tasso makes for a spicy, smoky alternative. Just slice off what you need and rewrap it. I keep it in the freezer and take it out as I need it.

This recipe for shrimp sautéed with tasso is very NOLA in origin. While shrimp broth is called for in the recipe, you can skip that and substitute with a little beer instead. I wouldn’t use a beer with too complex a flavor for it might get in the way, but I wouldn’t use some type of “light” beer either. The shrimp broth is easy to put together using the shells of the shrimp in the recipe. Peel the shrimp and make the stock while you do the rest of the prep. The stock should be ready when you are ready to cook. Shrimp stock, like most seafood stocks, cooks for only 20 minute or so. There’s always the option of using chicken broth, too. The recipe for shrimp stock follows at the end.

Serve the shrimp with some rice, cold beer, and you are all set. As the late, red suspendered Cajun chef Justin (“Joo-stan”) Wilson used to say, “It’s wondermus, I ghar-un-tee.”

Shrimp with Tasso

For two servings

½ to ¾ pound shrimp

½ cup diced tasso

2 or 3 spring onions (scallions), chopped (about ½ cup)

½ cup diced red bell pepper

1 rib celery, diced

2 or 3 cloves minced garlic

1 cup chopped (canned) plum tomatoes, along with some of their juice

shrimp stock (recipe below)

1 to 2 Tablespoons chopped Italian parsley

1 Tablespoon unsalted butter, optional

salt and ground black pepper

olive oil, for cooking

1. Peel and devein the shrimp; reserve the shells for stock. Place a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Season the shrimp with salt and pepper. When the pan is hot, swirl in one to two tablespoons olive oil into the pan. Add the shrimp; you don’t want to cook the shrimp entirely at this point. Sear them off on one side, turn them and sear them on the other side, then transfer them to a plate.

2. Let the pan cool slightly then add the tasso, adding additional oil to the pan if necessary. Stir and let the tasso cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the onions, bell pepper and celery, and continue cooking. Scrape the bottom of the sauté pan as the vegetables cook to loosen any “browned bits” that might have developed. Saute the vegetables until they begin to soften, about 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the chopped tomatoes and some of their juice; season with salt and black pepper. Ladle in about ½ cup shrimp stock (or some beer or chicken broth) to the pan and simmer for 3 to 4 minutes. Return the shrimp to the pan to finish cooking the shrimp. Taste and add salt and pepper, if needed; stir in the parsley, the butter (if using) and remove the pan from the heat. Divide the rice between two bowls and divide the shrimp, tasso, vegetables, and sauce. Serve with cold beer.

Shrimp Stock

Reserved shrimp shells

3 cups cold water

½ teaspoon salt

½ onion, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

1 rib celery, chopped

1. Place the shrimp shells and vegetables into a saucepot; add the water and salt. Place the pot over high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook the stock for twenty minutes. Remove from heat. Strain the stock through a colander or strainer, reserving the liquid. Discard the shells and vegetables.

There is also a recipe for corn and tasso “hash” in the archives 7/8/12

Seasonal Beet Salads

Beets. The line is clearly marked. It's either "yes" or "no". There is no "maybe" with beets.
I am the only person at this web address who will eat beets. If you don't like beets, don't run away just yet. This same idea could be used substituting roasted carrots for the beets (see archives: 9/24/14). What follows is less a recipe but more of a way to approach beet salads throughout the season.

Stick with me, you will understand.

Most beet salads you find in restaurants combine the beets with cheese, usually goat or blue cheese since it complements and off-sets the sweetness of the beets, along with some greens, and nuts.  Recently while out with youngest daughter I had a beet salad composed in this manner but the result was cloyingly sweet, using a balsamic vinegar glaze and candied nuts. Sweet upon sweet upon sweet. It was sweeter than some desserts.

So dodging the incredulous looks of my family members, I have been making roasted beet salads. I added some strawberries since they were also in season. I crumbled some blue cheese (gorgonzola dolce) onto the plate, added a few toasted walnuts and some locally grown pea shoots. As the season changes, the strawberries can be replaced with another seasonal berry. You can change the cheese (Birchrun Farms blue? A nice local goat cheese? What about cheddar or a jalapeno jack cheese?), the nuts (hazelnuts? pecans?), and the greens.

You get the idea. Own it.

Instead of boiling, roasting has become the preferred cooking method for beets. Cooking times will wary depending on the size of the beets.

To roast beets:

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Rinse the beets, trim the root ends and cut off the beet greens, if attached. (The beet greens can be sauteed as a replacement for spinach or another green.) Place the beets on a sheet of aluminum foil. Drizzle the beets with olive oil, season with salt and black pepper. You could also add a few springs of fresh thyme, too. Wrap the beets, place the beets onto a baking tray and roast the beets for about 45 minutes to one hour, depending on the size of the beets. The beets are done when they are easily pierced with the point of a knife. Remove from the oven. When the beets are cool enough to handle, peel off the skins (red beets can stain so you might choose to wear a pair of disposable food prep gloves), discard the skins, and store the beets in a covered container in the refrigerator until needed.

Before serving, dice the beets and toss them in a white balsamic vinaigrette (Follow the basic ratio of 1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar mixed with 2 or 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil; season with salt, ground black pepper, and a bit of sugar. Mix well and store until needed.)