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If you're anything like me, the mention of beets and brussel sprouts sends a cold chill coursing down the length of your spine. Not to mention the idea of the two together in the same meal - it's my childhood nightmare! However, in the interest of finding a way to make them tasty, I decided to have a meal of them in their most unflavored form in order to get a good idea of what can be added to help them become tasty. First up, the brussel sprout.

Brussel sprouts are basically mini cabbages which means they have an inherit bitterness that must somehow be overcome. In addition, care must be taken not to overcook them because this releases glucosinolate and sinigrin which taste and smell like sulphur. The general rule of thumb is no more than 6-7 minutes of cooking (after this you release the sinigrin). I think I accidently overcooked them (but also mine required some peeling because the outer layers were pretty bad).

I sauteéd them in a bit of olive oil, with some garlic and salt and squeezed an orange over the top (to attempt to overcome the bitterness). It wasn't a complete success, but it tasted okay. I've been doing some research, and many people like to cut a cross into the base of the sprout to aid in cooking, so I'm going to try this next time. Next on the list, Beets!

Beets are wonderful for their health benefits (as with most dark colored vegetables). They are rich in betaine (an amazing nutrient in its own right), folate (vitamin B9), and contain quite a few other vitamins (B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, C) and minerals (Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Phosphorous, Potassium, Zinc). In addition, beets have high nitrate content which lowers blood pressure significantly. Cooking beets in most ways is not the best idea because you lose a lot of these nutrients. The only way to keep them from escaping is to bake them unwashed and unpeeled, and then run them under cold water and peel the skin off (it comes of fairly easily with rubbing).

I baked about 5 beets at 200ºC (400ºF) for about an hour and half in a baking dish with the lid on. After this I let them cool a while, and when room temperature I peeled the skin and stored them in an airtight container (except for the ones below which I chopped and served). One thing important to remember with beets is that they have enough sodium already (so no need to salt).

The result of this method was anticlimatic. It didn't taste any different than any way I've had them before. They were firm and juicy (which was good), but the same taste and smell remained (not so good). I don't see much room for improvement serving them by themselves (even though I intend to try) so I'm going to experiment with blending them into a tomato sauce or something that will drown the taste / smell. Remember that when you eat beets you have to brush your teeth within an hour because they will stain. I've read that eating broccoli, spinach or other leafy greens beforehand will form a temporary protective barrier over your teeth.Last, but not least is Kale. I love it actually, but I know some people may not, so I included it on here. I sauteed it with carrots, broccoli, garlic, tomatoes, celery, chopped olives, chopped chilies and then topped it with some feta cheese. I noticed that when I leave out chicken it doesn't taste quite as good (I think the small amount of fat on the chicken adds a very important part of the taste).